The Path to Follow
by digimichael96
Summary: Ash isn't in his own peaceful little world anymore. People and Pokemon alike struggle to survive in the shell of what the world used to be. But Ash is just as hopeful and determined as ever in this Pokemon AU. Pokeshipping most definitely. Rated T just in case.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Hey, guys. So, I've personally loved Pokemon for a very long time. While first investing myself deeply into the anime and eventually playing the games, Pokemon is something that has stood the test of time in my life. That being said, I thought I'd give a fanfiction a try. I have so many different ideas floating around in my head right now that it's crazy, but maybe you're feedback can help me out. _

_ Just as a heads-up, this is an AU in which the Pokemon world has been plunged into a post-apocalyptic state and Ash and his companions don't exactly hold the same titles that they did originally. You'll see what I'm talking about in a bit. Without further adieu, I give you, **The Path to Follow**._

The room was cold and dark. There were small trails and stains of blood all around, but it mostly gathered in a pool around the small creature that was the room's center focus. It's yellow fur was matted and patchy, sticking up in random places. The little monster had gone through Hell in a short amount of time... And it wasn't over yet.

The slow trod of footsteps seemed to echo around the room as the young man walked over to the creature. He was wearing a very worn pair of jeans and a plain black t-shirt. His unruly, black hair was flattened a bit from wearing a hat all the time, but he wasn't wearing it now. His face seemed calm and stoic, but just below the surface a number of different emotions bubbled and churned: Pain, Regret, Heartbreak, and, most of all, Loss. Shakily the young man lifted the pistol in his hand and pointed it at the unconscious figure in question.

In the few moments that followed, his composure seemed to falter as a single tear slid down his cheek and he muttered a few words to himself, knowing that the creature couldn't hear him, _"I'm sorry, Pikachu..."_ He closed his eyes tightly and pulled the trigger. The shot rang out loud and clear as many Murkrow took to the sky squawking and screeching at the sudden sound. The pistol clatter to the ground as the young man fell to his knees. Ash Ketchum was broken.

_10 Years Ago_

"Come on, Pikachu! Let's go find mom and show her what we found!" A younger Ash Ketchum bounded through the trees on his way home with a small, yellow rodent clamoring to keep up with it's short legs. Now, Ash was clad in a simple yellow t-shirt, blue shorts, and a blue baseball cap. He was a typical youngster!

"Chu Ka Pi, Pikapi!" The little creature replied breathlessly in an attempt to get Ash to slow down. He did not, and so the tired pikachu was forced to keep running. The young boy had his hand wrapped around the item in question as he bolted through the forest excitedly. Eventually, he burst into the open clearing that was his little hometown of Pallet.

The open area had a few small houses scattered about giving the small town a very quaint feel. All of the buildings were made of natural materials that could be found in the area: Mostly wood, with some stone for stability. There was one larger building at the edge of the town, however, that was made of metal. Strange noises and smells came from that building though, so Ash's mother had forbade him to go there. Still, young Ash was quite curious as to what he might find there in the strange, metal building at the edge of town, if he only he could take a peek.

Nonetheless, he ran past it for now because he was far to excited by what he and his pikachu had found in the forest. It had been mostly Pikachu who found hid. In fact, it seemed almost like Pikachu had been drawn to it the way that he had randomly perked up while they were playing and bolted off to retrieve it. Stranger still, he refused to touch it and Ash was forced to bend down and dust off the palm-sized object. After getting a good look at it, he couldn't resist showing to his mother, who always seemed to enjoy his findings more than his dad ever used to. But Ash preferred not to think of his father very much.

Finally, Ash arrived at his home, he could smell his mother cooking inside and he immediately forgot what he'd been doing. His only concern now was how long until the food was done and he could eat it. He shook his head in an attempt to focus himself on the task at hand, "Mom! Look what me and Pikachu found!" He ran into the kitchen and skidded to a halt next to her.

The women turned from the stew she'd been preparing and bended down so that she was at eye level with the boy. She was wearing a pair of dark blue jeans and a pick shirt. Her long brown hair was tied back in a pony tail and she was wearing an apron over her clothes while she cooked. Her eyes were a soft and warm brown color that made Ash feel safe and always seemed to make him smile, even when he accidentally hurt himself playing and it stung really bad, "What did you find, dear?" She smiled at him and he smiled back excitedly while hardly being able to contain himself.

"Here, look!" He held out his hand to show her. Resting in his palm was a small, transparent-looking stone. It was tinted a light green color and in the center was a small yellow streak in the shape of a lightningbolt.

Delia Ketchum gasped, "Wow, Ash! Do you know what this is?" She stared at the stone mesmerized. She didn't think there were many of these left in the world. In fact, she'd almost thought that there were none left.

"No?" Ash was puzzled. He just thought he had found a cool looking rock. Was there something more to it?

"This," She pointed at the stone, "is called a thunderstone. The stone possesses very strange and unique powers that when used can make certain types of Pokemon evolve!"

Ash's eyes widened as he looked at the stone, "Wow! Really? Like what kind of Pokemon?" Ash was beginning to get very excited again.

His mother closed her eyes and thought for a moment as if trying to remember, "Well, let me see... If I remember correctly... There are only three kinds. One is very rare and can only be found by very talented Pokemon trainers. It's name is Eevee. Eevee can actually evolve into all kinds of different Pokemon if you treat it a certain way. Another kind is from a place far away. The Pokemon is called Eelektrik and it's from a place called the Unova region. They evolve into very powerful Pokemon. And the last... Well, the last Pokemon is pikachu, of course! Pikachu evolves if it makes contact with the thunderstone. That must be how Pikachu was able to find it in the first place! He has a special connection to that kind of stone."

Ash's jaw dropped, "You mean that Pikachu could evolve if I wanted him to? He could become super strong like that Pokemon from far away?" He stared at his little mouse Pokemon in disbelief.

"Sure, Ash. You see, Pokemon are very unique creatures. They have the ability to become stronger over time like humans, except sometimes, when they reach a certain level of power or come in contact with a stone like yours or even become really happy, they evolve into even more powerful Pokemon." Delia explained this to Ash as if he were still only 5 years old.

"I knew that already, Mom. I just meant that Pikachu is already so great, so how could some stone make him better?" Ash was still puzzled. He liked Pikachu the way he was. Why would he need to evolve.

"Well, the stone makes him more powerful. If Pikachu were to evolve it could use even more powerful attacks than it can now." Delia was trying to spell it out carefully for Ash.

Ash looked at his mother, then at Pikachu, and then back at his mother, "I don't wanna use the stone. I like Pikachu the way he is now. And no stone is gonna change him." Ash smile proudly.

Delia smiled, too, "That's very adult of you to say, Ash. I'm proud of you."

They both laughed, but were quickly interrupted by a voice. A man's voice, "Yes, well. That's all well and good, but if you don't want to use the stone, maybe you'd consider giving it to me?"

_A/N: It's a bit of a cliffhanger I suppose, but nothing too crazy. Just a reminder, this is a bit of a different set-up from the normal. Just to give you an idea, there's no Pokemon League and, by extension, no Gym Battles, no Contests, and no typical Pokemon journey for your typical ten year old. If that's something you really enjoy about Pokemon (I know it is for me) and you simply can't live without in a story about Pokemon, feel free to stop reading now. I won't be offended. For the rest of you, I hope you enjoyed what I've written so far and, personally, I'd like to keep going. However, like I said before, I'd appreciate the help and support of my fellow Pokemon fans. Please, if you have the time, Read and Review what I've written. What did I do well? What did I do poorly? What should I put into the next chapter? What should I keep out? I'm not experienced in this sort of thing, so every little thing helps. That being said, if you think that the entire thing was terrible, Tell me! I want to know... But, I'm afraid this Author's Note has gone for a while now, so I'm just gonna end it here. But before I do, I'm not sure about the title yet. I just kind of picked something because I wasn't sure and because I'm not exactly positive on what's gonna happen yet, but maybe that's something else you guys could help with. Yes? No? If not, that's fine. I'll keep thinking. The important part is that I'm having fun and I hope you all are, too. Anyway, until the next installment, See ya!_


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Hey, guys. So, it's been a few hours since I posted, and I'm feeling antsy, so I've decided to begin the next chapter. Anyway, I might talk more in the end, but for now, Happy Reading!_

Standing in the doorway was an elderly looking man with short gray hair and a very serious expression. He wore a red button-down shirt, tan khakis and a white lab coat. He walked into the room and the first thing that Ash noticed were his eyes. His face was stoney and clinical, but his eyes seemed warm like his mother's.

"What are you doing here?!" Delia yelled, "Get out of my house now!"

The old man opened his mouth to respond, but he was beat to it by Ash, "Wait, Mom!" Delia's expression softened as she looked curiously at her son.

"What are you-" Delia began, but was quickly cut off by Ash.

"Who are you?" Ash was speaking directly to the man. He seemed just as puzzled by Ash's sudden outburst as his mother.

After a few moments, he seemed to collect himself, "My name is Samuel Oak. You don't know me, but I know you. And I know your parents. Or, rather, I _knew _them. They don't seem to like me much anymore." He looked past the boy towards his mother. Ash was surprised by the expression on her face. He'd never really seen her like that before. Her expression was hard and angry. She had a fire in her eyes that replaced the once gentle warmness that they'd held only moments ago.

"You know why that is... You're own children, Sam. You couldn't even protect your own children!" Delia was furious.

"I know!" Oak responded, "I know. I failed." His voice seemed to waver as he spoke, "But what was I supposed to do? I had to make a choice! And I stand by that choice."

Ash was very confused at this point. He had no idea what the two adults were arguing about, but he didn't like this side of his mother. Before she had the chance to yell again, Ash interrupted again, "Stop it! Both of you. I don't know what happened, but I don't care! No one should fight like this. No one..." He trailed off as he remembered the last time he'd heard two people fight like they were. He shook his head and held back the tears that were beginning to rise up. He looked at Oak, "What do you want? This?" He held up the stone that he'd been so proud of, "Take it!" He threw it to the ground, and as it clattered across the floor he couldn't help the tears that began to flow down his cheeks. He turned and ran away from the pair of them and didn't look back, even at the sound of his name being called by his mother.

* * *

Ash sat and stared out over the water. Sometimes, when it was warm out, he was allowed to go out in the water and swim, but that was when he was younger. His mother didn't let him do much of anything anymore. Not since... He was surprised that he'd been allowed to go out into the forest that day.

His mind began to wander as the sun set in the distance. Just as it met the water, the sky and sea seemed to light up in a million different colors: Red, Blue and Yellow. Ash smiled at the beautiful sight before him until he noticed something. A shadow in the water. He hesitated because it could easily be a water Pokemon, but as he stared at it he realized that it was a person. A girl. Ash quickly looked around for someone to help. Anyone. But there was no one around. He'd run from his house and there was no way he could run there in back in time. He had to save the girl.

Without another second's thought, Ash ran out into the water and dove into it's depths towards the dark figure. His vision was blurry under the water, but he could make her out towards the bottom. As he got close he noticed that her eyes were closed and that bubbles were trailing out of her mouth. Ash looked around quickly for some reason as to why she was just floating here under the water and he eventually found it. Her leg was caught on a vine of some kind.

Ash was losing air fast, but he forced himself down to her feet to try and free her from the vine. He pulled and tugged at the vine with all his might, but it wouldn't budge. In a second of desperation, Ash got an idea: A crazy, strange idea that couldn't possibly work, but he tried it anyway. He began to bite down hard on the vine in an attempt to tear through it, or at least weaken it. Every so often he would tug at the vine to see if it would snap, but to no avail.

After what seemed like hours, Ash's air was running very thin and he tried one last pull and the vine broke. The girl's foot free, she began to float to the surface, but Ash knew she wouldn't have enough time for that. So, instead he wrapped his arms around her waist, placed his feet on the ground and pushed with all his strength shooting them up towards the surface.

When their heads were finally above water, Ash swallowed as much air as he could. When his breathing finally got back to normal he looked at the girl and noticed that she was still unconscious. He quickly paddled them both to the safety of the land. Upon reaching the beach, Ash pulled the girl onto the sand and really looked at her for the first time. She looked to be around the same age as him, maybe a little older in fact. She had fiery red hair that came down to her shoulders. She was wearing a blue, one-piece swimsuit and she had a bit of a scrawny frame to her.

After examining the girl, Ash bent down to listen to her heartbeat. He placed his ear on her chest and closed his eyes. He could hear a slow steady beat and a small smile came upon him. The first since he'd run away from home, "She's alive."

Just then he began to hear voices in the distance, he lifted his head and looked in the direction of the voices to see two figures approaching. As they neared, Ash began to make out what they were saying, "Ash! Is that you, honey?" and "Are you okay, child?" He recognized the the people to his mother and Mr. Oak.

"I'm fine! But this girl needs help!"

Within a few minutes, the pair arrived. They no longer looked angry as they had before. Now, they looked concerned, and even a little ashamed, it seemed, from the way they'd acted. Delia immediately wrapped her arms around Ash as if to make sure he was there before saying, "Oh, Ash. I'm so sorry that we upset you like that, dear. Are you okay?"

Mr. Oak cut in, "Who needs help?" He was just behind his mother, obviously slowed by age.

Ash ignored his mother's hug and ramblings about his own well being and looked at the old man, "She does!" He gestured toward the unconscious girl as if it was obvious who needed help, as it should have been.

Delia seemed to forget about her own child for a moment, "Oh, dear. Is she okay?" She looked at the pale face of the young girl.

Ash in an uncharacteristically adult way replied, "Her heart's still beating, but it's slow. She was unconscious in the water and I pulled her out, but I don't know how long she was under or how much air she had left."

Delia immediately went into "mom mode." She rushed around to the girl's other side facing Ash and placed her ear to her chest as he had. After confirming that her heart was beating she moved her ear closer to her mouth. After a few moments, she pulled away and said, "She's not breathing."

Mr. Oak pushed her out of the way, "Move!" He then began to push against her chest in a very rhythmic fashion. After a while, the girl began to cough up water and took a few deep breaths before her eyes fluttered open. They were blue.

She looked around dazed, "Where- Where am I? What's going on?" Her eyes seemed to focus and look at each person individually and notably resting on Ash a little longer than the other two, "Who are you?"

Oak spoke up, "My name is Samuel Oak. This is Delia Ketchum and her son, Ash. He saved you from drowning in the water."

Her eyes seemed to widen at the thought, "I don't remember-" Then, she focused on Ash, "You saved me?"

Ash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "I guess so."

The girl noticeably blushed a bit, "Th-Thank you."

Ash flashed a wide grin, "No problem." Then, he stopped as he realized something, "Hey, what's your name?"

The girl looked up at him with her shiny blue eyes and said, "My name is Misty."

_A/N: Well... There ya go! Ash saved Misty from drowning. How about that? I thought it was a nice touch considering she's probably gonna be doing a lot of saving later on. Or maybe not. I'm not sure yet. Anyway, that'll wrap up this chapter. But first, do you think the chapters are too short? Or maybe they're too long? What do you guys think? I'm still waiting for some kind of review and I'd love to know what you guys think so far. Am I doing well? Do I need to improve? Let me know! Until the next installment, See ya!_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: Hey, guys. So, this is like my third post in three days, but I'm really just trying to get all my ideas down while they're still in my head. I still haven't gotten any reviews, which is kind of discouraging, but that's okay. People are still reading and that's the important part, I think. Anyway, I'll probably talk at the end of the chapter. Happy Reading!_

The days seemed to go by quickly for the young red head. Since she'd woken up on the beach with Ash and the others she hadn't told them anything about herself other than her name. She'd even refused to reveal her last name for fear that they might recognize it. Misty was enjoying her time in Pallet Town and didn't want it to end so abruptly... Or, at all.

Most of the time, she and Ash just sat by the water where they met and talked. To be honest, Ash did most of the talking: telling stories, talking about his favorite Pokemon, and, sometimes, he just did impressions of Pokemon to make her laugh. And he did. Something about him just made the little girl happy. She didn't want their time to end, but, of course, all things must eventually come to an end.

During one of the many times that Misty and Ash had found themselves by the water talking, Ash's mother came to the waterside with news.

"And then, Pikachu made this face at her that made her laugh even harder-"Ash was in the midst of telling a story when his mother interrupted.

"Ash?" She seemed hesitant, but she firmly placed herself into the conversation.

"Yeah, mom?" Ash had a puzzled look on his face, almost as if he didn't recognize her, "What's wrong?" Then, Misty noticed it. Delia usually had a very warm and inviting look in her eyes. She was always so kind and nurturing like Misty's own mother, but now her eyes were closed off and her voice was little more than a whisper.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" Her eyes then wandered over to Misty, "_Alone._" Ash followed her gaze and looked at Misty with the same puzzled expression.

"Why?" Ash's innocence towards the situation would have made Misty smile if not for the tense situation that they were currently in.

"It's fine," Misty interjected, "I'll go." She flashed a small smile towards Ash before walking away from the pair. As she walked along the small beach, she wondered what they'd be talking about, and why Mrs. Ketchum had insisted that they talk alone. Had she done something wrong? Did Mrs. Ketchum dislike her? Then, a though occurred to her. _Does she know who I am?_

Without a second's thought she ran back to where the mother and son were talking to find Delia gone and Ash standing there confused, "What did she-" She started, but Ash cut her off.

"Is it true?" Ash seemed to have a far away look in his eyes. He wouldn't look her in the eye.

"Is- Is what true?" Misty's heart seemed to clench at the thought that he, _Ash_, the boy who seemed so understanding and kind, could feel the same way about her as everyone else.

"About your parents... Are- Are they dead?" Ash looked at her for the first time. His eyes, which usually let anyone look right in and see how he was feeling and what he was thinking, were empty.

"How- How did you-" Misty's voice was beginning to break. Could he hate her, too?

"My mom. She told me." His tone was flat and unemotional. Misty looked at him for a moment before deciding that she wasn't welcome anymore. She lowered her head and turned away as tears welled up in her eyes. "Misty, wait."

Misty stopped, if for no other reason than because Ash's tone seemed so sincere and pleading, "Leave me alone." She tried to force herself to keep walking, but Ash's voice rang out again in her ears, making her stop.

"Please," She could hear him approaching, "Misty, I understand that-"

Suddenly, Misty's sadness and pain changed to anger and rage. She spun around and got right up in his face, "You don't understand! No one understands! My parents are dead! How could you, someone with a mother so loving, so caring, so _alive_, possibly understand what I'm feeling?!"

His eyes seemed so sad, "Because my dad's dead..." His voice trailed off, "I know it's not the same. And I know there's more to it that I will never understand. But I know what it's like to lose a parent, Misty..."Ash's voice was choked up a little and tears were forming in his eyes. He bowed his head as a few tears fell to the ground, "I'm sorry."

Misty's anger faded, "Ash, I-"

Ash shook his head. He lifted his head and Misty was surprised to see he was smiling, "It's okay. Because now we have each other, right?"

Misty was shocked. She wasn't quite sure what to make of the situation. She'd yelled at him. She'd practically driven him to tears and here he was smiling at her and telling her that she could rely on him, and that he would rely on her, "I-" Then, Misty did something she didn't think she would ever do in this kind of situation. She smiled, "Yeah. We have each other, Ash."

They stayed there and talked a while longer, sharing stories about their loved ones. It was strange how easy it was to talk to him. He was so young. They both were, but, when he was around, she felt so strong.

It seemed almost too good to be true. And soon enough, Misty noticed that every so often Ash would pause and he'd that far away look again. Then, he'd shake off whatever was on his mind and keep on smiling and laughing with her.

Eventually, she had to ask about it. "Ash, are you okay? We can talk about something else if you want..?"

He shook his head, "No. It's not that. I'm okay. It's just-" He closed his mouth tight as if he didn't want the words to escape, but it was too late now. Misty had to know what he'd been about to say.

"'It's just-' what?" She stared at him curiously. He avoided her eyes knowing that if he looked into them, he would probably succumb to them.

"It's nothing, really," he tried to flash a smile to make it look like nothing was wrong, but Misty wasn't fooled.

"Ash. What's going on?" She stared at him with her big, greenish-blue eyes and Ash let out a heavy sigh.

"It's-" he paused as he tried to hold it in again, but he was unsuccessful, "It's about your parents."

Misty was confused. They'd been talking about both of their parents for a while. What could he be having trouble with. _Unless..._

"My mom said that you killed them."

_A/N: Yikes. I know I've read the whole "Misty being responsible for her parents death" thing before, but I've always thought it was interesting and I thought that, especially given the current setting (Which I haven't really incorporated into the story yet. Sorry!), it would make sense to add it in. This chapter was a bit shorter, but I kind of just wanted to get the point. I like the whole reveal, cliffhanger bit at the end of each chapter. I'm not sure if I'll do it each time because it'll probably just get tired, but for now, I think it's okay. Of course, I'd like to know what you guys think. You've been awfully quiet so far. Maybe that's just because I barely give you a day to respond before I add another chapter, but in any case reviews would be greatly appreciated. Even if it's just one word. "Good." "Bad." "Boring." "Interesting." I'd love to hear what you guys think. I've decided not to add another chapter until I get at least one review so I know what direction I should take the story in next. Who knows? Maybe I'll wimp out and keep writing anyway because I want to (This is a very strong possibility), but I'd like to hear from you guys anyway. I've been very impressed and delighted to see people follow and favorite and view. Thank you guys for that. Honestly. But, please, please, please, tell me what you guys think with words. It would mean the world to me. Thanks guys for your support so far. Until the next installment, See ya!_

* * *

_A/N: Sorry, guys. Just realized I've forgotten about disclaimers and such, so... Just in case there was any confusion, I don't own Pokemon. And by the way, the cover image is an edited version of a much larger image at 3greatfacts, specifically, /are-we-living-in-an-emotional-wasteland/ because a link won't work. I don't own that either. Anyway, Until the next installment, See ya!  
_


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: So, it happened. I got a review! Yeah! Q__uick shoutout to __SatoKasu4ever__ for reviewing. Thank you for your understanding and for your review. I really appreciate it. Just the one is enough to drive me to write this next chapter (Shows how easy I am, huh?). Thanks all of you for your continued support. I was really surprised to see how many views I've gotten already. But I'm rambling, so, here you go._

_Don't own Pokemon, by the way... Okay. Storytime!_

Misty stood there for a minute shocked. "I-" Tears began to well up in her eyes.

Before Misty had the chance to say anything, Ash continued, "I don't believe it for a second." He looked her right in the eyes. Misty wasn't sure what to say, so Ash went on, "I mean. I know we've only really known each other a few days, but, after talking to you everyday, I could never believe that you'd ever be responsible for something like _that_."

Misty broke down, "But I _am_, Ash! They're dead and it's all my fault." Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. Before Ash had the chance to cut-in again, Misty continued, "They died because of me. If it weren't for me my parents wouldn't be dead. And-" She sniffed, her voice on the edge of breaking, "if you don't believe me, just ask my _sisters_." The last word snaked out of her mouth with a mixture of pain and anger. She buried her face in her hands and sobbed quietly.

Ash stood there a minute not exactly sure what to do. Should he leave her alone? Should he stay and comfort her? Should he ask more questions? One thing was for sure. He shouldn't just stand there like an idiot. And yet, there he stood. Soon enough, Misty's crying slowed and she looked up at him with her puffy red eyes and whispered, "Why are you still here?" It was then that Ash knew what to do. Without a second thought, he walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. Misty seemed shocked for a moment, but then she warily put her arms around him, too. She was a few inches taller than he was, but it wasn't weird.

After hugging like that for a little while, Ash spoke up, "Don't worry. You never have to feel bad again. I'll protect you." Misty blushed, but Ash couldn't see as his head was buried in between her neck and shoulder.

"I- I don't understand." She managed to say.

He pulled away and looked deep into her eyes. His big brown eyes boring into her blue ones. Misty couldn't help the continuous color that touched her cheeks throughout the encounter, but Ash didn't seem to notice. "Whatever happened. I don't care. It's in the past now. You seem like a good person to me, so it doesn't matter what happened in your past. You're here now. And you're never gonna get hurt as long as I'm around." Ash was unbelievable. He was forgiving and kind and understanding. Misty made a silent promise to herself that one day she would pay him back somehow.

"Thank you, Ash," There was still one thing that was bothering her, "but what about your mom. She probably hates me." Misty's arms fell back to her side, "I can't go back there."

Then, Ash smiled a big, goofy smile, "Sure, you can! My mom may be a little bit weird right now, but she'll be okay."

Misty looked puzzled at Ash's drastic change of mood, but decided not to comment on it, "No, Ash." Now, it was Ash's turn to look puzzled, "I can't go back. She's not being weird. Not everyone is as nice as you. I'll just have to go back home, I guess." She looked at the ground as she talked.

"But, Mist..." Misty looked up at the nickname. It had been the nickname her parents had used for her and since the day they died she'd never heard it used, but, regardless, she felt comfortable hearing him say it, "You can't go home yet." Before Misty had the chance to argue, Ash continued, "At least... Not alone."

"Who would go with me?" Ash looked at his feet appearing a little embarrassed. Upon realizing what he was saying, she shook her head, "No. You can't come. Look at you. You're just some kid."

"I am not a kid!" Ash retorted stubbornly.

"You're so a kid!" Misty replied in an equally childish manner.

"Am not!" Ash shouted.

"Are, too!"

"Am not!"

"Are, too!"

"AM NOT!"

"ARE, T-"

"PIKACHU!"

Both children fell to the ground momentarily paralyzed by the electric Pokemon's thundershock. It had hurt enough to quit their bickering, but not enough to cause any serious damage. After regaining feeling in his face, Ash muttered, "Jeez, Pikachu. What was that for?" They had been too busy arguing that they hadn't even noticed the little mouse scamper over to them.

Eventually, when they could both move again they stood up and tried to continue their discussion in a more orderly manner to avoid being shocked again, "Why can't I come with you?" Ash questioned.

"Because it's dangerous out there, and you could get hurt," Misty stated firmly.

"So, could you. And I promised to protect you. And I never break a promise." _Neither do I._ Misty thought to herself recalling her own promise from earlier.

"Well, I have Pokemon with me, so I'll be fine. Besides I made it here on my own, didn't I?"

"Yeah, but your Pokemon didn't seem to help the other day when you almost drowned." Ash thought he had her.

"I didn't have them with me." She was so stubborn.

"Why would you travel all the way here with your Pokemon and then suddenly forget to bring them with you into the water?" Ash was confused, but his anger was beginning to build again. Why couldn't she just let him come with her?

Misty didn't seem to have an answer to that. She simply looked out over the water, "Look, Ash. I appreciate that you want to help me, but I'm fine." She looked back and flashed him a small smile to try and reassure him that she was okay.

Ash stood there for a moment, then looked at Pikachu. They seemed to share an unspoken agreement. Ash looked back at Misty and nodded, "Okay. Fine. If you'll really be okay on your own. I'll stay here."

Misty was surprised that Ash had changed his mind so easily. Especially, when it seemed like he was so set on coming, "Oh, uh... Yeah." Collecting herself, she smiled again, "I'll be fine." She took a deep breath, "I guess this is goodbye then." He nodded, but didn't really respond. He really was acting strange.

She waited for some kind of acknowledgment that this could very well be the last time they ever saw each other, but he just stood there staring at her with a stone cold expression. It seemed so out of character for him that she knew something was up, but instead of questioning she decided to take the opportunity to leave while she could. She gave Ash one last look before turning around and walking away. She didn't look back.

* * *

It didn't take long to reach the other side of town, it was very small and really difficult to get lost in. When she passed Ash's house she looked at it for a moment before continuing on her way. She really thought that she'd found somewhere that she could be happy. She was only left with one option now.

By nightfall, Misty could see the towering buildings of Viridian. _Back to the real world, I guess._ She'd been very surprised to see Pallet Town so untouched. It was so peaceful and nice there. Everywhere else, however, had been infected.

Misty closed her eyes as she thought about what she'd seen and heard. It had started about five years previously. Pokemon were beginning to behave abnormally. First, it had only been wild Pokemon that were acting out. They would act more ferocious than usual, attacking defenseless trainers and Pokemon alike without any provocation. Then, captured Pokemon started to act strangely. None of them seemed to be able to be contained by a pokeball. They started gaining a hostility towards other Pokemon and trainers and, eventually, their own. Pokemon had been known to turn on their trainers randomly and kill them in cold blood. The virus became known as Pokerus, or the Pokemon Virus, but most people just called it PV.

Towns and cities all over were being assaulted and overrun by Pokemon infected with PV. Some of the bigger cities like her own had built up defenses to keep some of the infection out, but no one really understood it enough to know how to defend against it. Even with the protection, Pokemon still came down with PV once in a while and when that happened there was only one cure: Death. Misty herself had witnessed the death of some of her own family's Pokemon already and she was fearful of the day that one of her Pokemon came down with PV, too.

Misty finally reached Viridian and made her way to one of the safest places in the city: The Pokemon Center. She was allowed to stay the night and as she lay there, she began to think of everything that was going on around her. She though about how terrible things had gotten in such a short time. Then, she thought of Ash and smiled a bit to herself, _The idiot doesn't even know what would have been waiting for him out here._ With the comforting idea of Ash in mind Misty finally fell asleep.

_A/N: So, there you guys go. The reason why the world is the way it is. "Zombie Pokemon" as I've decided to refer to them as. Or at least to you guys. I'm not sure if they'll have a specific name in the story other than "the infected". Either way, things are pretty serious everywhere. I'm trying to keep everyone as in character as they can be given the circumstances. Ash is usually displayed as a more dense individual, but in this case, I thought it would be more suiting to have him see Misty's pain and want to help her regardless of if he understands it or not. That's just who I think Ash is. I even had them bicker a bit for Nostalgia's sake. I doubt that they're gonna be able to act like children very often in this story, I'm afraid. Anyway, tell me what guys think. Is this a cool idea? Or should I scrap it and give up writing forever. Personally, I think it's cool, but of course I do. Otherwise I wouldn't write it. But I digress... Please Review! I'd very much appreciate feedback. I'm not sure if I'd like to keep the whole "no update until I get a review" thing. I do want to know what you guys think, but I also like writing this just because it's fun, so I'll probably update whenever I feel like or when you guys review. Whichever comes first. It seems to me that I kind of abuse these Author's Notes, so from now on I'll probably shorten them, but in any case. I had fun writing this chapter. I hope you enjoy reading it. Until the next installment, See ya!_

_P.S. I haven't really decided what Misty and Ash's ages are yet. I was thinking somewhere between 7 and 10, but I'm not sure. What do you guys think? What age does it seem like they are? Or if you guys think that their ages aren't really that important and you'd prefer if they remained some kind of mystery, I'd be cool with that, too. I'm just not sure if how old they would be at this point. Considering the fact that there's a ten year difference between what happens in the very beginning of the book and the current time, Ash is gonna be in his late teens or twenties at some point in the story. I dunno. Maybe it's not even important. Just thought I'd bring it up and ask what you guys think. Okay, seriously leaving this time. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: Hey, guys. I'm gonna keep this short because I know you guys don't wanna hear me talk. I've gotten a few more reviews already. Quick shoutout to my current reviewers__: xavier. flincher, RaveOn-LastYear, and SatoKasu4ever, thanks so much for your input. I've messaged you guys more personally if you haven't taken notice, but I just wanted to let you guys know how much I appreciate your reviews. They really do help. But anyway, on with the story!_

_I don't own Pokemon..._

"Staryu! Use rapid spin! Get away from those Pokemon!" Misty called out desperately to the starfish Pokemon in hopes that it would be able to shake off the infected. For a moment, nothing happened, but to Misty's relief Staryu rose up above the horde of disease-ridden Pokemon and spun it's way towards Misty, "Oh, thank goodness." Misty sighed.

Misty rushed over to greet the incoming Pokemon, but as she got closer she noticed that it wasn't slowing down. With barely enough time to react, Misty jumped out of the way of spinning starfish. One of the Pokemon's points cut across Misty's arm as she jumped drawing blood. She hit the ground and clutched her arm in pain.

A sudden realization dawned on her, "Staryu. No." As the Pokemon landed on the ground close by, Misty could see that the gem at it's center was glowing an odd color. It pointed it's top spike toward Misty and unleashed a torrent of water towards her. The pressure was enough to send her skidding across the ground towards the other Pokemon. Some were too busy trying to kill each other to take notice of her, but others quickly diverted their attention to the new target. They bared their teeth and claws and began to charge their respective attacks before unleashing them on the young girl.

* * *

Misty awoke with a start. She felt beads of sweat on her forehead and closed her eyes tightly trying to forget the images that she'd been forced to view in her nightmare. _They're getting worse, _she thought to herself. Misty had been having nightmares of her Pokemon becoming infected and turning on her for a long time, but recently, they'd been becoming more frequent and more detailed.

She hopped out of the bed in the Pokemon Center and traveled through the hallway and down the stairs to the main room. There were a lot of people frantically running around, but ever since the virus broke out that was fairly normal. She checked to see that her pokeballs were at her waist before leaving the insanity of the Pokemon health care center.

It must have been around noon because the sun was high in the sky. Misty hadn't meant to sleep in so late, but she shrugged it off, _It's not like I have anywhere else to be anyway._ She thought to herself. She furrowed at her brow as she tried to decide what to do.

She'd come to Viridian because that was the only way she could have gone easily without getting lost, but not she was unsure of whether she really wanted to go home. Or rather, she wasn't sure if she had a home to go to. She closed her eyes as she thought back to the events that occurred prior to her leaving her home.

_9 days ago_

Misty had been in her room all day. The news reports were saying that the PV Pokemon had completely destroyed Lavender Town. There had been a few survivors, but it seemed that most of the people and Pokemon that resided in the town were dead. Misty didn't leave the house much. She would never admit to her older sisters, but she was deathly afraid of the infected Pokemon.

She heard the sound of her bedroom door open to show the tall, slender body of her eldest sister, Daisy. Daisy had always been a pretty girl with long, blonde hair that hung down to the small of her back and a figure of a supermodel. She was wearing a yellow tube top and a pair of really short jean shorts. Misty mentally sighed at how revealing Daisy's outfit was, but also because of how jealous she was of her sister's beauty. Daisy was also the kindest of Misty's sisters. Even so, that didn't make her nice, "Let's go, runt. We wanna show you something." With that, Daisy disappeared the hallway.

Puzzled by the sudden request made by her sister, Misty rose from her bed where she'd been sitting and followed her down the hall. Misty lived in a small apartment with her sisters in a protected complex designed by the city to keep citizens as safe as possible.

During the early days of the outbreak, certain families refused to leave their homes for various sentimental or financial reasons. Misty's had been one of them. Misty's home used to be the City's local Pokemon Gym. It was a place where trainers, young and old, came to test their skills. Her family held a long line of Gym leaders and they wouldn't so easily abandon the place. But soon enough they were forced to leave and find an apartment like everyone else.

Misty followed her sister to the kitchen/dining area. She noticed on the table that there was a single cupcake. She looked at her sister's curiously, _Could it be?_ Her question was soon confirmed by her sister's unanimous greeting, "Happy 11th Birthday, Misty!" They all flashed smiles, but they seemed forced. Misty understood though. No one usually smiled in these times. Regardless, she let a fairly genuine smile touch her lips.

"Thanks, you guys." They nodded and Misty picked up the cupcake and examined it, her smile fading from her face, "But," Misty continued, "We haven't even recognized anyone's birthday, let alone mine, since, ya know..."

Their smiles faded as well. Lily, the youngest of her older sisters, scoffed. Much like Daisy, Lily had a tall, slender figure, but her hair was pink. She wore a red tank top and sweatpants. Even with her lazy appearance, she looked amazing. She glared at Misty and said, "Jeez, Runt. Why can't we just, like, do something nice for you? Why do you have to question it?"

Misty lifted her hands in defense, "No! I mean, I appreciate it, but-"

She was interrupted by Violet, her second oldest sister. She had blue hair, "Whatever, Misty. We won't celebrate your birthday from now on." Misty was at a loss for words, everything had been fine a moment ago. Lily and Violet stormed off in a huff.

Misty looked pleadingly at Daisy, but she only shook her head and said, "We were just trying to be nice. We know things are hard. It's hard on all us really. I-" She paused and her lips tightened into a thin line as she thought, "Happy Birthday, Misty." Daisy walked off in the same direction as the other two. Misty just stood there feeling more upset and alone than before. She looked at the uneaten cupcake in her hand and as she allowed a single tear to stream down her face she dropped it in the nearest trash can.

Later, when Misty had gathered the nerve to do so, she walked over to her sister's joined bedroom to apologize. She stopped to knock when she heard them talking. Curious, she listened in, "...Like she doesn't even want to be happy. Why do we even try?" It was Violet speaking.

"Well, would you be happy if you killed your parents?" Lily began, but was quickly quieted by Daisy. Misty stood horrified. _I killed them?_

"Shush! She doesn't know that it was pretty much her fault that they died. She was too young to realize what was going on," Daisy explained.

"Oh, please!" Violet said, "She was like five how could she not realize that they died because of her. She was smart enough to figure out the lock on the front door and she was smart enough to find her way to the river, so what makes you think that she wasn't smart enough to know that her parents were killed because of her actions?"

Daisy didn't appear to have an argument against that, "Either way, I'm not gonna bring it up in front of her if I can help it. She's upset a lot as it is."

Violet and Lily conceded, "Fine. We won't talk about it." And they moved on to other topics, but Misty wasn't listening anymore. _It's my fault... They're dead because of me._ Tears began to stream down her face. She ran to her room with her face buried in her hands. She collapsed on her bed in a fit of tears.

After crying herself to sleep, Misty had a nightmare of the memory of her parents death. Except the entire time they screamed that it was her fault. Misty woke up shaken and crying. She looked out the window, it was pitch black outside.

She stared out at the dark streets of Cerulean, "I don't even deserve to be safe..." She closed her eyes tight as more tears began to build up. She took a deep breath, _I can't stay here anymore_. She stood from her bed and grabbed a small, red, drawstring bag from her closet and shoved some clothes and her bathing suit inside.

She walked out into the hallway and peered into her sisters' room. They were all sleeping peacefully in their beds, completely unaware that their little sister was leaving. _I won't be a burden to you three anymore, _Misty thought to herself.

She grabbed her belt of Pokemon, which consisted of her staryu, starmie, and goldeen, and left the apartment. She walked out of the protected complex, out of the inner wall of the city, and out of the city itself. And she didn't turn back.

* * *

Misty opened her eyes and realized that she'd been standing outside the Pokemon Center for a while. People had been starting to stare. Deciding to try and leave as quickly as possible she resolved to leave Kanto wanted to put as much distance between herself and Cerulean as she could. Satisfied with her plan she started off away from the Pokemon Center and towards the West side of town.

The attempt at protection in Viridian was much less potent than in Cerulean. They'd built entire walls of scrap metal to keep the infected Pokemon out there. Here in Viridian they had a barbed fence with a few guards scattered about. She'd managed to slip out of Cerulean in the middle of the night, but in the middle of the day, she would have trouble trying to get out of Viridian.

She managed to get close to the gates of the city without being noticed by any guards, but it didn't appear as though there were any way around them. Suddenly an idea occurred to her, maybe she couldn't sneak around them, but if she could divert their attention, then she could just walk right through.

She reached for her pokeball and was about to release a Pokemon, when she thought back to her nightmare. _Staryu..._ _You'll be okay,_ She decided confidently. She released Staryu from the carrying device and with a flash of white light, the starfish Pokemon appeared.

Misty bent down close to the Pokemon, "Alright, Staryu. You're gonna use Swift over behind that building," she pointed to a taller building that was in plain view of the guard post, "When the guards come over, use Camouflage and hide. Then, when they walk away again, I'll return you to your pokeball, okay?" The gem in the center flashed as the Pokemon spoke it's cried an affirmation.

Misty's plan went off without a hitch. Staryu caused a distraction and lured the guards, Misty quickly ran through the gate and hid somewhere the guards wouldn't see her when they came back. But that's when things went wrong. Misty was ready to find Staryu and return it to it's pokeball, but before she had the chance she heard a screech.

Whipping around, she saw a group of monkey-like Pokemon, and they didn't look friendly. The small, white, pig-faced mankeys had big blood shot eyes and their fur was tinted slightly green. _PV_, she thought. She'd dealt with a few PV Pokemon when she was making her way to Pallet Town, but she'd only run into one or two at a time. There had to be at least ten Mankeys in front of her and she was missing one of her most powerful Pokemon.

Before she had the chance to react, they screeched again and began to run towards her at full sprint. There was no way that she could outrun them and she didn't want to risk her Pokemon getting hurt, so Misty closed her eyes and awaited what was to come.

"Pikachu, Thunderwave!" _That voice. _Suddenly, there was a flash of yellow and all of the mankey's were enveloped in a yellow aura forcing them to stand still as electricity coursed through them. Misty felt something grip her hand and pull her away from the infected Pokemon.

By the time she gathered her senses, she and her savior were halfway to the gate. She stole a glance at the person gripping her hand so tightly and her hopes were confirmed. It was Ash. "A-Ash!"

He looked over and flashed a quick smile before tugging her the rest of the way to the gate, then he spun around and yelled, "Come on, Pikachu! We made it!"

Misty followed his gaze to see the little mouse easily outrunning the paralyzed Pokemon. It glanced over and sped it's way over in a matter of seconds. It jumped into Ash's arms and Ash hugged him tightly as he laughed to himself, "Good job, Pikachu! That was great!"

Ash didn't have long to be excited as he was immediately grabbed by the collar and spun around to face the guards at the gate, "Are you crazy, kid?! You could have been killed!"

Ash furrowed his brow, "And she would have been if I hadn't saved her." He said gesturing to Misty who simply stood there embarrassed.

The guard looked at Misty for a moment, "How did you even get out there? There's not another town out in that direction for miles."

"I- uh..." She was interrupted by a new voice. A women's voice.

"What's going on here? Why are you holding that boy like that?" Everyone's head whipped around to see a woman with blue hair and wearing an officer's uniform. She couldn't have been older than twenty-five, but she definitely commanded respect as both guards that were present immediately stood at attention and saluted.

"These children went out on the route, Ma'am," one said.

"We were just reprimanding them, Miss," the other said.

"That's nonsense! These are children! Release them immediately," the officer commanded.

The guards looked at each other and back at her, "But, Miss-"

"Now!"

"Yes, Ma'am," and they released Misty and Ash without another word.

Ash stuck his tongue out at the guards after they turned their backs, and Misty laughed. The blue haired woman walked over to them and held out her hands, "Come on, you two. Where are your parents?" Neither took her hands, "What's wrong?" She implored.

"Well, my mom's in Pallet Town," Ash muttered.

"And my parents..." Misty's voice caught before she could say, but the officer seemed to understand.

"I see. Well, come with me. I'll take you somewhere safe," she looked at Ash, "and I'll send someone for your mother immediately." She turned and began to walk, but Misty stopped her.

"Uhm. Miss Officer Lady? Can you hold on for a second? I left my Pokemon over there." Before waiting for the Officer to confirm her request, Misty ran off behind some building and came back a few moments later, attaching a pokeball to her side, "Okay. We can go."

The officer nodded and smiled, "By the way, my name's Officer Jennifer, but you can call me Officer Jenny." She winked at them and began to walk again.

They followed Jenny to the nearest Pokemon Center, and, after walking inside, she walked up to the pink haired nurse behind the desk and spoke to her briefly before walking back to Ash and Misty, "Alright, well I have to go, but I'm leaving you in the very capable hands of Nurse Joy. Be safe, you two." She smiled at them and left.

As soon Jenny was out of earshot, Misty turned to Ash, "What are you doing here!?"

"Well, right now I'm sitting in a Pokemon Center in a town I've never been to talking to a girl who's yelling at me." He said taking a look around.

Misty rolled her eyes at Ash's stupidity, "I told you to stay back in Pallet Town."

Suddenly, Ash got a very serious look on his face, "And I said that I would protect you."

Misty gaped at him, "I don't need your protection she replied crossing her arms stubbornly.

Ash scoffed, "Apparently, you do. You were almost killed out there."

Misty got in his face, "I had that under control."

"Really? Because standing there with your eyes closed while a bunch of angry mankeys ran at you bearing their claws was really working for you." Ash retorted not backing down.

"Look, Ketchum. I never asked you to come and save me back there." Misty was getting very angry and she wasn't sure why. He had saved her after all.

Ash's expression suddenly softened, "You didn't have to, Mist." Misty faltered at the sound of the nickname her anger fading, "I said that I wouldn't follow you as long as you were safe. And you weren't."

"I-" Misty began trying to regain her argument.

"Misty, I promised to protect you. And I never break a promise. Now, quit being so stubborn and let me come with you."

Misty lowered her head, "Ash, you don't understand."

"What don't I understand?" Ash was puzzled by Misty's behavior.

"Pallet Town's been lucky so far," Misty tried to explain.

"Misty, what are you talking about?"

Misty sighed, and told Ash everything. Ash sat there stunned for a long time. Days seemed to go by before he finally spoke, "We have to stop this." He looked at Misty seriously, "We have to find a cure."

_A/N: So, now Ash knows. And you all know a little bit more about Misty. Pretty dark so far. Too dark, you think? I made this chapter a bit longer, too. You guys like that? Should they be even longer? Please review! Tell me what you guys think. I'll update again soon. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: Hey, guys. I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. I'm gonna try and make this chapter as long as the last one at least. Happy Reading!_

_Don't own Pokemon. Just so everyone knows..._

_1 day earlier_

Misty stared out over the water, "Look, Ash. I appreciate that you want to help me, but I'm fine." She looked as Ash and smiled, but Ash saw right through it.

Ash was about to call her on it when he realized that there wasn't much of a chance that she would ever concede to him. She was very stubborn. Ash looked over at Pikachu and from the look in his eyes, Ash could tell he was thinking the same thing. Ash looked Misty dead in the eyes and nodded, "Okay. Fine. If you really think that you'll be okay on your own. You can go."

Misty looked shocked, "Oh, uh... Yeah." She blinked a few times as if trying to collect herself and smiled, "I'll be fine." She took a deep breath, "I guess this is goodbye then." Ash nodded, _That's what you think._

Misty seemed to stare at him with a puzzled expression, but Ash did his best not give away his plans. Eventually, she seemed to decide that whatever was puzzling her wasn't worth thinking about and shot him one last meaningful look before spinning on her heel and walking away. She didn't look back.

Ash stood and watched her go, but as soon as she was out of sight he turned to Pikachu, "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

Pikachu nodded, "Pi."

Ash smiled, "Alright, you follow her and see what she does, I'll go get some stuff from the house."

Pikachu tilted his head to the right, "Pika."

Ash's face fell, "You're right. If I go back there, Mom definitely won't let me go off and follow Misty. Trade?"

Pikachu nodded and sped off in the direction of the house. Meanwhile, Ash followed Misty in much the same direction as the little mouse, only doing so that he wouldn't be noticed by any of the town's inhabitants. They wouldn't let a ten year old kid out of the town so easily.

He decided to go to the very edge of town and walk all the way around. It would take much longer, but he definitely wouldn't run into trouble that way. Or so he thought, "Hey, kid what are you doing?"

Ash spun around to see a slightly older boy with spiky brown hair and black eyes calling out to him. Ash was confused, the only building that was remotely close was the metal building. Therefore, Ash decided to carefully and eloquently ask the boy where he had come from and what business he had in Ash's affairs, "huh?" Nailed it.

"What are you doing sneaking around?"

Ash gathered what little wits he had, "I- I'm not sneaking around!" He stubbornly denied, "What are you doing out here?" He was trying to turn it on him now, "Who are you?"

"My name is Gary," He wore a long-sleeve, purple shirt and blue jeans, "Gary Oak."

* * *

Pikachu ran through the familiar town at breakneck pace. He reached the site of his family's house. He remembered the first time he'd seen it. He'd still been a pichu then.

_5 years ago_

Pichu and his mother were scavenging the forest for food like they did before every winter. The berries were very scarce that year. They'd been forced to travel dangerously close to the human's settlement.

"_Be careful, Pichu. Humans won't hesitate to take you away if they find you." _Pikachu's mother scolded him. Pichu knew that humans were dangerous, but they were also very fascinating. The way that they seemed to gather together in large wooden caves and run around with sticks and stones screaming nonsense words. Or at least the little ones did that sometimes.

Pichu and his mother had reached the edge of the forest and while his mother continued to look for berries Pichu heard a loud noise coming from one of the caves. After taking a quick look at his mother to make sure that he wasn't being watched, Pichu scampered off into the settlement towards the cave.

* * *

Pikachu shook his head as he came back to the present. Looking up at the familiar house it dawned on him that this would be the last time he saw the house for a while. Nonetheless, he scampered around to the back and hopped into Ash's bedroom through the open window. Looking around, he saw a jacket on the ground, _Pikapi could use this when it gets cold._ He picked it up in his mouth and taking a quick look around he made his way back to the door.

"Pikachu, wait." Pikachu stopped, _Oh, no._ He turned around to see the face of Delia Ketchum looking down at him very seriously, "If Ash is going after that girl, at least make sure he's got a little food." Then, she picked the jacket from Pikachu's mouth and slipped something into the pocket and handed it back to Pikachu with a smile, "And make sure Ash knows that I love him." Pikachu nodded happily, "And, Pikachu..." Pikachu stared curiously at the woman, "Make sure he comes home safely." Her face was very solemn. It was the face of a mother who knew there was no more she could do to protect her son.

With one last look at the Ash's mother, Pikachu jumped back out the window with his trainer's coat. He ran to the northern edge of the town to find the path he and Ash would be taking. Ash wasn't there yet, so Pikachu sat and waited.

* * *

"Oak?" Ash was confused. Wasn't Oak..?

"That's right, Ash." Ash spun around to see the old figure of Mr. Oak. He had a very stern expression, "I never really had the chance to introduce you two when you were younger. This is my grandson, Gary. He's your age and he loves Pokemon, too. However, I'm afraid, he won't have the chance to see the rest of the region like you will. You are leaving, aren't you?" Ash looked up at the old man confused, "Yes, Ash. It wasn't that hard to figure out what you were doing just now. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if your mother knew somehow."

Ash was at a loss for words, "B-But. I was gonna." He paused to collect himself, "Are you going to stop me?"

He shook his head, "No, boy. I'm not going to stop you. And I don't think your mother will either." Ash was about ask another question, but Oak silenced him, "She and I both know how important it is that you go off on your own and do what you have to do. But, before you go, I have something for you." Oak turned and gestured for Ash to follow. Gary went off ahead.

Oak led Ash to the nearest building, the metal one, and opened the door. Ash stopped outside, "You live here?"

Oak nodded, "Where else do you expect a crazy, old man like me to live?" Then, he smiled a very warm smile that Ash wouldn't have expected from such a man that was usually so stern.

Ash smiled back and followed him into the house. After the main hallway there were many rooms that branched off. Some doors were open to show a sitting room or a dining room, but some were closed with the labels that warned off going in.

One door was cracked open just enough that Ash could see inside. There were many machines that beeped and smoked. Suddenly, the door closed and Ash looked up to see Oak's stern face again, "Curiosity isn't a sin. But we should certainly exercise caution with it."

"Sorry, Mr. Oak."

He smiled again, "Actually, It's _Professor_ Oak. I was once renowned for my study of Pokemon," Then his face became stern again, "But I'm afraid that was a long time ago." Then, he turned back down the hallway leading to the back room.

The room opened up to reveal many different shelves lining the walls. On the shelves were lines of pokeballs, "Wow... You have a lot of Pokemon, Professor."

"I used to, Ash. Now, I only have a handful left now. And I'm about to have one less." Ash looked up at the man curiously. What could he mean by that? "You plan to go out into the world with a single Pokemon, but I'm afraid that we live in a time where that's no longer safe. So," He picked up a pokeball and stared at it for a moment, "Here you are. This ought to do you well." He held it out to Ash who stared incredulously at the man.

"But, Professor..."

"I insist, my boy." Then, he smiled for the third time that day and Ash couldn't help but wonder how often he smiled because each one seemed forced and difficult to maintain. Still, Ash accepted the pokeball.

"What Pokemon is it?" He asked, his excitement suddenly growing.

"Release it and find out, Ash." His smile was wide and appeared genuine, so Ash looked at the pokeball and pressed the small button in the center. It opened and a white light burst forth from the center and accumulated at a spot next to Ash on the ground.

It's shaped morphed to the size of a small creature with long pointed ears and a furry tail. As the Pokemon materialized, it's fur became a brown color and it's eyes the same. It had a small, mane-like tuft of fur around it's neck that was a more creamy tan color. The tip of it's tail was the same color and it had three distinct toes on each of it's four feet.

"Eevee," it cried and smile up at Ash wagging it's tail.

"An eevee? That's awesome!" Ash's smile grew very wide as he collected the Pokemon in it's arms and hugged it tight. He released it when he realized that the creature could barely breath in his grip, but smiled at it all the same.

"And that's not all." Ash looked questioningly at the man again. What else could he possibly have to give? Another Pokemon? "Here." He held out a small bag. Ash took it and looked inside. Even more confused, he looked at the man. Inside the bag was the thunderstone.

"But, Professor, I don't want to evolve Pikachu."

"Yes, Ash. I remember. But do you remember what other Pokemon can be evolved by the thunderstone?"

Ash scrunched his brow in thought. Then, he remembered, "Oh, yeah!" He looked at Eevee, "Eevee can evolve from a thunderstone, too."

"That's right, Ash. The question is whether or not you want to use it on Eevee here or Pikachu." Ashw as about to speak up, but Oak went on, "You always have time to change your mind boy. And if you do, you'll have this with you. He lifted the stone out of the bag to reveal that there was a black string attached. "Here. Put it on." He held it out to Ash. Confused, but willing all the same, Ash slipped the string around his head and let the small stone hang around his neck.

He tucked it under his shirt and looked back at the aging man before him, "Thank you, Professor. For everything." With that he gave the man a hug, which he had not expected, and ran off through the house with the sound of Gary complaining about how he _didn't_ get a present from his grandfather echoing behind him.

Ash burst out the door and ran straight through town, no longer concerned with who saw him, especially since it was getting dark now. He wondered if he should consider sleeping at home for the night and leaving in the morning, but he shook of the idea because he knew that if he went home that there was a definite chance that his mother would decide to keep him there for the rest of his life if she decided that he wasn't allowed to leave.

He reached the northern edge of town to find that Pikachu was waiting patiently for him "Pikapi," He mumbled through the cloth in his mouth. Ash bent down and picked it from his mouth.

"My jacket?" He looked down at Pikachu and smiled, "Good thinking, Pikachu." He slipped it on and stuffed his hands into his pockets, "Huh?" He felt something in his pocket. He lifted it out to see that it was a bag full of food. He looked at Pikachu, "How did you-" Then, it occurred to him. He smiled, "Thanks, mom."

He dug through the bag to find a note on the bottom. It read:

"_Dear Ash,_

_I know that you're leaving on a big journey today. I know that there's probably nothing I could have done to stop you anyway, so here. I packed you some food. I love you so much, Sweetie. Be safe!_

_Love,_

_Mom_

_P.S. Don't forget to change your-_

Ash stuffed the note into his pocket and tried to hide his blush from his Pokemon. Unfortunately, he was unsuccessful, "Pika Chu, Pikapi?"

"It's nothing, buddy." He shook his head, "Okay. If we're gonna catch up to Misty, we need to get going." Pikachu nodded and they headed off into the night.

* * *

They made it to Viridian with good time and found the city to be pretty overwhelming compared to his little town. The guards saw him and immediately rushed him to the nearest Pokemon Center. Ash tried to tell them that he was okay, but they wouldn't listen. Eventually, when the guards left him at the center and the local pink haired nurse decided that he and his Pokemon were perfectly healthy, Ash headed off in search of Misty.

After asking around for a little while he found a girl that saw Misty, "Red hair, you said? Yeah. I saw her. She was kind of weird. She stood really still right outside the Pokemon Center for a while and when she realized that people were staring at her she ran off." She pointed in the direction Misty had apparently gone, "That way."

Ash smiled at her gratefully, "Thank you." Then, he ran off leaving the girl more confused then before.

He ran in the direction that she had pointed and, eventually, found himself at the western gate. The guards appeared to be returning to there post looking very confused. Quickly, Ash ran to greet them, "Excuse me? Have you seen a girl with fiery red hair? She's a bit taller than me and she has greenish-blue eyes."

The guards looked at Ash with a puzzled expression, "What are you-" Suddenly, they heard the sound of a group of Pokemon screeching from beyond the gate. Without a second's hesitation, Ash and Pikachu ran past the guards toward the source of the sound, "Hey! Get back here!" He heard from behind him. He glanced back to see if they were following him, but they weren't.

He looked past a tree to see a horde of mankeys screeching and running at something. Not just something. Someone. The girl he'd been looking for, "Pikachu, Thunderwave!" Pikachu darted forward and a wave of electricity shot from him enveloping the mankeys in a yellow aura rendering them immobile. Ash grabbed Misty's hand and sprinted back to the gate. He heard her exclaim his name and flashed her a confident smile to reassure that everything would be okay and they reached the gate within a couple of seconds. Quickly, Ash spun around, "Come on, Pikachu! We made it!"

Pikachu completely outran the mankeys and ran over to join them. He jumped into Ash's arms, "Good job, Pikachu! That was great!" There celebration was cut short by a guard grabbing Ash by the collar and yelling at him. After Officer Jenny straightened things out with the guards and brought them to the Pokemon Center, Misty and Ash had a bit of an argument which ended in her telling him some very unfortunate news.

He wasn't quite sure how to take the idea that Pokemon could be so angry and violent without any reason to be, but then he decided, "We have to stop this." He looked at Misty seriously, "We have to find a cure."

_A/N: So, in case that wasn't clear... That was Chapter 5 and the end of Chapter 4 from Ash and Pikachu's perspective. How'd I do as Pikachu? I'm not so sure about the flashback, but I'd like to know what you guys think. Please Review! Until the next installment, See ya!_


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: Hey, guys. So, last time you might have picked up on a line that Professor Oak said to Ash while they were walking through the house. Did it sound familiar? Well, that's because it's kind of a paraphrased version of another quote. I'll reveal who and elaborate at the end of the chapter. In addition, in case you were wondering about Ash's team. Well, seeing as I can't very well copy and paste everything from the anime, most of the characters are gonna have a bit of a change of Pokemon. Of course, some icons like Ash's Pikachu stick around, but you'll find that the inspiration for Ash's team is fairly obvious when we get closer to the final outcome. But, anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter as well as the last few. I can't thank you guys enough for the support you've shown so far. Happy Reading!_

_No soy dueño de Pokemon. ¡Gracias!_

Misty stared at Ash for a moment, "What? Stop _this? _Ash-"

He cut her off, "I know that it seems impossible, but there has to be a way, Mist. There just has to." He lowered his head, his voice sounding more desperate towards the end.

Misty would have argued with him, but she couldn't bring herself to crush his hopes. Especially when he had used her nickname again. "Okay," He looked up with a small glint in his eyes, "But I have no idea where to start."

Ash got a wide grin on his face. He'd hoped that she'd agree, "Great! Let's go!" Ash immediately grabbed Misty's hand and began to head for the exit.

While attempting to hide her blush at the sudden contact, she stammered, "W-wait! Ash! We don't even know what we're doing!"

Ash just flashed her another smile, paying little attention to present color of Misty's cheeks, "That's okay. I never know what I'm doing. We'll make it up as we go along."

Misty suddenly slammed her foot on the ground stopping Ash in his tracks, "Ash. We can't just go running out there with all those Pokemon and 'make it up as we go along.' It's dangerous enough out there, but if we're trying to find a cure. If we're trying to put a stop to all this, we need to put a little more thought into what we plan to actually do."

Ash stopped. He hadn't really considered the dangers of the situation. He just figured that Pikachu could handle all the Pokemon like he had the mankeys. It was suddenly dawning on him that it might prove too much for the little mouse. Ash unconsciously placed his hand over the stone around his neck, _Maybe if I-_ He shook his head, _no. Pikachu and I can handle anything without using some stone._ But still, the thought lingered in the back of Ash's mind.

Realizing that he probably looked silly just standing there deep in thought, he said, "Well, if we're gonna fix everything, we need to know more, right? Like how this _Pokemon Virus_ works."

Misty nodded at him, "But how are we gonna learn something like that?"

Ash thought for a moment, "Well, Professor Oak might know something?"

Misty looked at him confused, "Professor?" Ash nodded and explained what little he had learned of Professor Oak's past before he'd left his home town. After thinking for a moment, she went on, "I don't know about that. The way you described it, Professor Oak hasn't really been studying much anymore."

Ash looked at his feet as he mused over the answer they were looking for. His head shot up, "Duh! I got it." Misty stared curiously, "We're in a Pokemon Center, the place where people and Pokemon come to be looked after and healed. They've gotta know a little something about this virus."

Misty scrunched up her face, "Maybe... But even if they did, why would they reveal what they know to two little kids?"

Ash furrowed his brow. "I'm not a little kid," He argued.

Misty just rolled her eyes at his immaturity, "Fine. Be my guest. Go ask the nice lady what she knows about PV."

Ash's smile returned, "Okay. I will!" Then, he marched proudly off towards the Nurse behind the desk. Upon reaching his destination, he knocked on the desk to gain the woman's attention.

She looked up at him and a ghost of a smile passed over her face as she looked at the young boy before her, "How may I help you?" She recognized him as one of the two children that Jenny had pointed out to her before. She wondered why Jenny had taken a special interest in them.

"Hi! My name's Ash. Me and my friend Misty were wondering if you could answer a question." He beamed at her and she couldn't help but smile a bit wider at his enthusiasm.

She decided to humor him, "What's your question, Ash?"

"What do you know about the Pokemon Virus? Like is there a cure? How do we stop it?" Ash asked innocently.

Joy's face fell, "Oh... Ash, I-" She paused to try and figure how to put this delicately, "I'm afraid that we don't know enough about the virus to know how to cure it yet." Seeing his confidence melt from his face to be replaced by dread, Joy went on, "But... I promise you that we'll find the cure soon." She flashed a smile to try and reassure him that things would get better even though she knew that they probably wouldn't.

A spark of hope ignited in his eyes at this, "Really? You think so?"

Nurse Joy couldn't crush the boy, so she nodded and put on her most convincing voice, "Our top scientists are working their hardest to figure out how to cure this disease."

His next question took her even more off guard then his first few, "Who are your top scientists? Maybe Misty and I can help!"

Joy stumbled, "Uh... Well-" She collected herself and forced another smile, "While that's very nice of you to offer, I think that we'll be just fine. You should just enjoy yourself and have fun!"

Ash's eyes narrowed at her. He wasn't always smart when it came to knowing facts and answering questions and he certainly wasn't smart when it came to a lot of other things, he did know one thing. He could tell when someone was lying, "Why can't you just tell me? I want to help."

Again the pink haired nurse was caught off guard, "I- uh..." _Who was this boy? Why was he so insistent?_

Misty watched the encounter from her seat on the other side of the center. She looked down at her lap where the small, yellow mouse was curled up in a ball snoozing. She smiled to herself, _No wonder Ash seems so upbeat all the time. How could he be upset with this little guy following him around?_ Pikachu stirred and his eyes fluttered open. He opened his mouth wide as he yawned, "Chaaa." He blinked a couple of times before looking up at the girl and smiling, "Pikachupi."

Misty just went on smiling at the little creature, "Hello, Pikachu. Did you sleep well?"

Pikachu nodded, "Pi Pika, Pikachupi." Suddenly, he looked around, "Pika Pikapi?"

Misty tilted her head at him before realizing what he must have been asking, "Oh! Ash is right over there, Pikachu." She pointed in the direction of the front desk and Pikachu followed her gaze.

"Pika Pika Pi?" Misty scrunched up her face. She didn't speak Pikachu and, therefore, didn't have a clue what he was saying. Pikachu looked surprised at the idea that he might have to repeat himself, "Pika Pika Pi?" This time he seemed to be questioning more whether she had understood him.

Misty just shrugged, "I'm sorry, Pikachu. When Ash gets back from asking Nurse Joy questions, maybe he can translate." Upon receiving his desired answer, Pikachu simply nodded and curled back up on the girls lap falling back asleep. Misty just sighed, "Oh, Pikachu. What am I gonna do with you?"

Nurse Joy was beginning to lose her patience. Ash had been questioning her about the virus and the scientists studying it for at least ten minutes and wouldn't let it go, "... would just tell me, I could help them find the cure faster. And then-"

She interrupted, "Look, young man. It's very admirable that you want to help, but it is to dangerous for a little boy like you to go out in the wild searching for answers about a virus that he, like most people, knows little about. I'm afraid that I cannot and will not tell you what scientists are working on the cure. Now, please, sit down and wait for you parents to come pick you up."

Ash didn't break, "They're not coming."

Joy's face softened slightly with confusion, "What?"

He lowered his head suddenly as he began to shake, "They're not coming because both mine and my friend's parents are dead." He may have lied about his parents, but the tears came anyway at the thought of his mother dead.

Any of the nurse's remaining frustration melted away, "Oh. I'm so sorry. I didn't realize- Officer Jenny told me that you two needed to be looked after, but I didn't know why." She noticed out of the corner of her that the young girl appeared to notice Ash's sadness and rushed over.

"What happened?" The girl was holding a Pikachu in her arms and she had fiery red hair and sparkling blue-green eyes. Joy couldn't help but feel like she recognized the girl from somewhere.

Nurse Joy struggled to find words, "He just told me-" She paused pressing her lips into a thin line, "He told me that both your parents are dead..." Her voice became really quiet as she spoke. Misty stood there for a moment. She would have shared in Ash's sadness had she not heard the word _"both"_. She glanced at Ash realizing that he was trying to guilt information out of the poor nurse.

After a moment's hesitation, Misty resolved to scold Ash on his methods later and instead followed his lead. It wasn't hard to cry considering her parents actually _were_ dead. She choked out, "He's right." Then, she mumbled, "I'm sorry to have bothered you. We'll just be going." Grasping Ash's hand she began to lead him towards the door.

_1..._

_2..._

_3..._

"Wait! Come back." The nurses voice wavered as she pleaded with the children to return. She sighed. She really wasn't supposed to do this, but the kids deserved some kind of a break, "I'll tell you one name." They both seemed to stiffen and they turned around looking with hope again lit in their eyes. She clarified, "Just. One. Is that clear?" They nodded and came back to the desk. Joy scribbled one of the names of the assistants.

The boy himself couldn't have been much older than the children in front of her and he lived close by. Luckily, she knew for fact that he didn't really know much because he'd been fired as an assistant for inappropriate behavior. She slipped the folded paper over to the children and the boy, Ash, collected it into his hands and walked away giggling. Joy smiled. At least they were happy.

Ash and Misty walked away from the desk and Ash giggled that his scheme had worked. He whispered to Misty, "Nice work."

Misty just rolled her eyes, "Well, what's the name, genius? Who are we looking for?"

Ash opened up the slip of paper to read the name. He squinted a the letters sounding it out carefully, _"Brock Slate."_

_A/N: I know you guys probably hate me for another shorter chapter, but I can't help it. I update really quickly and, therefore, the chapters are a bit shorter. If you guys really think it's a problem, I'll space out my updates a bit more and write longer chapters. Just review and let me know. In the meantime, I'll probably just keep doing what I'm doing. I hope you like the direction I'm taking so far. There hasn't been a whole lot of action yet and I apologize. We'll get more of that in a bit. Right now I'm just kind of working in all the main characters. You'll see though. They're about to go into Viridian Forest, so that should be fun. Hint, Hint... Anyway, the line from earlier was the __"Curiosity isn't a__ sin. __But we should certainly exercise caution with it." line. It's a variation of Dumbledore's line in movie four, when Harry goes into the pensive. Showing off my Harry Potter nerd colors? You know it. Anyway, it was an old professor and a young prodigy, so I couldn't help it. Sue me! Actually, don't... I don't own Harry Potter. __There. Now, you can't sue me. I think... Anyway. This Author's Note is far too long, so I'm gonna sign off. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: Hey, guys. So, I keep breaking my self-proclaimed rule of waiting for a review before I continue, but, as of now, I'm thankful for the favorites and followers. That alone gives me enough drive to keep going. However, and I hate to ask, I really do, I do really need to know what you guys think. I thank you all so much in advance, but I'm done talking for now. Happy Reading!_

_If I owned Pokemon, I probably wouldn't be sitting in my bedroom writing a Pokemon Fan Fiction right now, but you can determine whether I do or not on your own. (Hint: I don't. Just saying.)_

As Ash and Misty ventured through the rest of the city to the north they were doing something that they would do quite a bit of in the time to come: They were arguing.

"Did we get the information?" Ash bellowed in retort to Misty's nagging.

"Yes, but-" Misty began.

"Then, what's the problem?" Ash interrupted.

"If you'd let me _finish,_ I'd tell you!" Misty shouted.

"Fine! Tell me what I did wrong. Forget about the fact that it was my genius plan that got the information we were looking for." Ash responded before adding, "And forget that you took part in it, too!" He flashed her a smug little smile that made Misty's blood boil.

"That _genius_ plan of yours was terrible. You made that nurse feel horrible! You lied about your mother's _death!_ How would you feel if she was actually dead, huh?" Ash's smiled melted at the thought, "Exactly! Lying is one thing, but lying about life and death is very serious and shouldn't be taken so lightly," Misty finished.

Refusing to give up so easily, Ash returned to a previous point, "If the plan was so terrible, then why did you help?"

Misty stood there speechless for a moment and Ash was sure that he had won, "I went along with it because if I hadn't and Nurse Joy figured out the truth and that you lied about it, she probably would have been even more angry with you than I am. Now, you tell me. Is that you wanted?" It wasn't Misty's actual reason for having gone along with the plan, but she was proud of the reason all the same as it finally shut Ash up.

After a few moments of silence, Ash spoke up, "Thanks." Misty just stared at him bewildered by his response. She hadn't expected to be thanked. She suddenly felt slightly guilty about lying about her reasoning, but didn't speak up. Ash continued unaware of Misty's thoughts, "It's really nice to know that you'd look at for me like that."

Misty tried to hide the light blush that crept up onto her cheeks, "It's, uh, no problem, Ash." She collected herself, "Who else is going to make sure you don't make any bonehead mistakes?" She flashed a cocky grin while Ash just rolled his eyes.

Ash looked ahead of them to see the north gate, "Looks like we're here." Misty nodded, but a sudden thought occurred to her, _How were they going to get past the guards?_ Ash apparently hadn't thought of this issue as he continued on his way towards the gate. Before Misty had a chance to stop him he walked right up to one of the guards, "Excuse me, sir. Can me and my friend get through? We're on official business."

The guard looked at him with an amused smile on his face, "Sure you are, kid, but I'm afraid I can't let you through. It's dangerous out there."

Ash's anger began to build at the guard's use of the word kid. He hated being called a kid, "Hey!" He yelled, slightly startling the guard and replacing the smile with a look of mild annoyance, "I'm no kid. And I am on official business. Me and my friend are gonna find the cure to the Pokemon Virus!"

"Pi, Pika!" Pikachu confirmed from his usual spot on his trainer's shoulder.

The annoyance that the man displayed touched his voice, "Look, _kid_, you're not going out there. This is for your own protection. You got that?"

The emphasis on the word "kid" certainly didn't help Ash's anger, "I'm not a kid!" Ash shouted as he stomped down on the guards boot. The guard let out a small shriek of pain. Ash tried to make a break for it as he pushed past the guard, but he was stopped when a strong hand gripped the back of his collar choking him as it pulled him back.

"Why you _little- _Ahh!" His sentence was cut off when a strong thundershock attack spread through his limbs forcing him to release his grip. Pikachu stood a few feet away, electricity still sparking off it's cheeks.

"Pikaaa," he growled fully prepared to attack again.

"Pikachu, stop!" It was Misty. She was rushing over from her spot on the opposite side of the gate.

Two strong arms wrapped around her waist lifting her off the ground, "Woah there, little girl! You're little boyfriend is gonna get punished for his actions. Don't earn yourself the same fate."

Misty squirmed inside the second guard's grip to no avail, "Let go of me, you jerk! I'm not a little girl, I'm 11 years old. I have 3 Pokemon of my own." Finally managing to loosen the guard hold on her, she pushed away landing on her feet, "And he's _not_ my boyfriend." She, Ash, and Pikachu were now both outside the gate and, upon realizing this, they ran off in the direction of a looming forest.

The guards looked after them. The second one spoke up, "Should we go after them? The Viridian Forest is really dangerous and they're just kids."

The first one rubbed his injured foot and twitched from the remnants of the electricity that was still in his system, "If those two are too stupid to accept the protection that we offer, then they deserve what comes." The second guard thought about it for another moment or two before resolving that his partner was probably right, but he stared off after the two children all the same, _Why did want to leave so badly?_

* * *

Ash and Misty continued to run through tall grass as they raced towards the forest before they realized that the guards weren't following them. They slowed to a walk as they reached the edge of the forest. Ash looked at the dark thicket between the trees with a wide-eyed astonishment, "These trees are a lot taller than the ones back home..." He trailed off. Pikachu nodded.

Misty looked at it and a chill ran down her spine. She'd traveled through the forest on the way to Pallet, but she'd been too focused on leaving her old life behind to pay much attention. Thinking about it now, she realized what kind of Pokemon she would find in there and her fear rose considerably, "M- Maybe there's another way around?"

Ash looked at her puzzled. The forest was big, but it didn't seem overly difficult to get through, "Come on, Misty. This is the fastest way to the next town. And if there are a bunch of sick Pokemon around then we shouldn't waste much time." Misty was angry that Ash had thought that through so well.

"I know." She muttered, "It's just that, well," She didn't want to admit this to Ash, but it seemed like it was unavoidable, "I'm scared of bugs..."

Ash just looked at her for a while thinking about what she had just said. He understood that the sick Pokemon were very dangerous and scary, but bugs? They were small and most of all couldn't do much damage anyway.

Instead of voicing these thoughts Ash decided it was best that he didn't question it. If she was scared of bugs, then she was scared of bugs. Ash was scared of things, too, and he definitely didn't want to run into any of his fears if he could help it. So, Ash just held Misty's hand in his and gave her a reassuring squeeze, "Don't worry, Misty. I won't let the bugs get you." He smiled at her and after a few moments she nodded. She could do this. Ash had saved her life twice already, she could trust him.

With a deep breath, they stepped hand in hand into the dark entrance of Viridian Forest.

* * *

The air was still. The little bulbasaur had managed to outrun the other Pokemon for now, but when they caught up, he'd have to put up another fight. And he just wasn't sure if he had it in him. After taking a very brief moment to try and regain some of his strength. He heard the sound that would surely mean his coming end. He heard the ever growing buzz of the swarm.

* * *

Ash's eyes had adjusted to the darkness of the forest fairly quickly. By the time he could actually see most of the things going on around him, they were in a very thick part of the forest. They hadn't seen any other trainers and Ash noted that it was probably because nobody in their right mind would enter such a forest while it was infested with diseased Pokemon. _Why are we here again?_

Misty wasn't thinking about other people or the disease or anything close to their actual purpose in entering the forest. The only thing that she was thinking about was how quickly she'd be able to get to the closest exit at the first sign of a bug's presence. At the moment, she guessed at anywhere in between 13 and 21 seconds.

Misty thought she had found a chance to test her theory when a faint buzzing sound filled the air, but Ash only squeezed her held hand and led her forward towards the source, "Ash! What are you doing? Why are we going to towards it? Shouldn't we go around?"

Ash just gave her a reassuring smile, "I don't think that they're coming for us. If we're lucky we can get right through the thicket of this forest and make it to the other side in no time."

Misty shook her head furiously, "Or we could enter the really dense part of the forest, get lost, and then get eaten alive by bugs."

Ash was about to produce a counterargument when a one of the trees in front of them began to rustle. Both heads snapped to look at the coming danger. Could it be an angry swarm, or a lone behemoth? Misty didn't want to stay and find out, but she couldn't break Ash's hold, "Just wait," he whispered, "It could be anything."

Ash's optimism seemed absolutely ludicrous to Misty. Of course it was going to try and kill them, whatever it was, but Ash seemed so sure that it could prove to be just as helpful as it was dangerous.

Just as both of their patience began to run thin, a lone figure burst through the brush. It ran on four legs, it was small it was a light green color with a green bulb on it's back. As it ran at them and Ash was finally going to loosen his grip on Misty he noticed something. The Pokemon didn't look hungry or angry. It looked scared. It skidded to a halt in front of the two trainers and it growled at the pair of them.

Without an order from Ash, Pikachu jumped down from Ash's shoulder and stood in front of the frightened creature, "Pi Pika Pi Chu Pikachu Pi Pi."

The creature stared at Pikachu curiously before looking at Ash and Misty and back to Pikachu, "Bul Bulba Ba Ba Bulbasaur."

Ash leaned over to Misty and whispered rather excitedly, "It's a bulbasaur. Do you know how rare they are?"

Misty growled back, "I know how deadly they can be." Ash leaned away and didn't speak anymore.

The two Pokemon talked a bit more, but were soon interrupted as the faint buzzing they had heard earlier began to get much louder very quickly. All of the heads looked over in the direction that Bulbasaur had come from afraid of what was to come. Ash stole a glance at Misty. She was absolutely terrified.

After putting on a serious face he looked down at the Pokemon at his feet, "Alright, guys. Whatever is coming this way, we can handle it. I believe in you guys." Ash lifted the pokeball out of his pocket and released his eevee as well, "Eevee, Pikachu. You two are gonna take the front. Pikachu Paralyze anything that comes through. Eevee use helping hand to boost Pikachu's power. Bulbasaur?" He paused to make sure that the other Pokemon was on their side. After a moment's hesitation, the grass-type Pokemon nodded, "I need you to protect Misty. Anything that gets close, push it back to Eevee and Pikachu and they'll do what they can. You understand?" He nodded. Ash picked a stick up off the ground, "I'll watch our backs. I'll make sure nothing gets us from behind." The trees began to rustle, "Everyone get ready!"

Meanwhile, Misty's fear began to be replaced by confusion. Ash seemed to have aged ten years in the past five seconds. One moment he was being a total fanboy over Bulbasaur and the next he was giving everyone orders to defend themselves. To defend _her_. Inspired by Ash's courage and ability to take charge, Misty shook off her fear for a moment and released two of her Pokemon, "Staryu, Starmie. Do anything that Ash tells you to do. You got that?" They both nodded and voiced their individual cries.

Ash looked at Misty a bit confused at first, but then nodded, "Staryu and Starmie, try and maintain as much distance from your opponent as possible." He paused looking around, "That goes for everyone. If they get too close they can infect you, too. Keep away from them." He stole a glance at the trees seeing that whatever was coming was about to arrive, "Just make sure that you take out anything that gets too close. Pikachu will be paralyzing them, so I need you to be the brute force, okay?"

Everyone rushed to their positions just in time for the first Pokemon to fly out of the trees. It looked like a giant wasp with two stingers for hands. It had giant red eyes and were green at the tips of their stingers, a sign of the infection. Misty gasped and Ash knew why. The bug was massive. At least three times the size of a normal beedrill. Ash guessed the virus had other effects on the Pokemon other than an increased aggressiveness.

Pikachu wasted no time. He ran up and, using Eevee as a stepping stool, jumped high in the air, "Pikachu!" A surge of electricity radiated off of Pikachu and hit the Beedrill directly. It immediately plummeted to the ground and crashed Bulbasaurs feet. Two vines outstretched from either side of the small Pokemon and wrapped around the bug. He lifted it up and tossed away the unconscious form of the insect.

This pattern repeated itself with the next few beedrill, but, eventually, they started coming in two at a time, then three, and so on. Staryu and Starmie were firing off swifts and water guns to keep the beedrill at bay, but it wasn't working very well. Ash suddenly had an idea, "Staryu! Starmie! Use Water gun on all of the beedrill. Pikachu!" He made eye contact with his long time friend and partner, "When they're all completely soaked, let loose your strongest thundershock, okay, buddy?" He nodded.

Ash's plan started out a bit rough, with Pikachu charging up his attack, he couldn't paralyze incoming foes. Without an order from Ash, Eevee began to kick up sand at each new beedrill blinding them long enough for Staryu and Starmie to unleash their water guns. Meanwhile, Bulbasaur smacked away Beedrill that got too close to Misty with his Vine Whip. Ash was left to hit any Beedrill that tried to attack from behind, baseball style. It was terribly effective, but it kept them at bay as only one would ever try at a time.

Eventually, when all of the beedrill were soaked through the exoskeleton, Pikachu unleashed his attack, "Piiii-kaaaa-CHUUUUUUUUU!" A jagged yellow line of electricty shot from the small rodent and struck the nearest beedrill, the line then connected with another and another until all the beedrill were enveloped by the electric attack. They shrieked in pain and Ash winced as he watched them all singed black from the attack. Within seconds the attack was over and all the beedrill lay unconscious or dead at their feet. Ash didn't really want to find out which.

No one said anything for a while, but eventually Misty spoke up, "That was _genius, _Ash." He looked over at her and she was giving him a weak smile. Ash recognized the word choice and chuckled to himself. She joined in.

"Thanks, Misty. I just wish that we didn't have to do that, ya know?" Ash looked at his shoes.

Misty gave him a sympathetic look, "I know, Ash. If it makes you feel any better, what you did saved all of our lives, and we can't thank you enough for that. _I _can't thank you enough for that."

Ash smiled and his smile quickly transformed into a cocky grin, "So, that's three times I've saved your life, isn't it?"

Misty rolled her eyes, "Shut up! I wouldn't even be in this mess if you hadn't followed me."

"If I didn't follow you, you'd be dead!" Ash retorted.

"I had something else up my sleeve," Misty lied angrily.

"You did not! You were just standing there."

"I did so! I was preparing myself the butt kicking I was about to give those Pokemon."

"You were not!"

"Was so!"

"Were not!"

"Was so!"

"Piii," Pikachu threatened. It silenced both of them, but they continued to glare at each other. Pikachu just shook his head. "Pi Kaaa," he sighed.

"Bulba Bulbasaur," Bulbasaur interjected.

This brought Ash back to reality, "Oh, yeah! Bulbasaur!" He knelt down next to the seed Pokemon, "Hey, Bulbasaur. What do you think about coming with me and my friends on our journey? We're gonna find the cure to the Pokemon Virus!"

Bulbasaur's eyes widened, "Bulba?"

Ash nodded grinning, "We sure are. So, what do you say?"

Bulbasaur stared at him for a moment and nodded, "Bulba Saur."

Ash leaped for joy, "Yeah! I got a bulbasaur!" Then, he stopped, "But, wait. I don't have a pokeball to catch you with." He sighed, "I knew we should have stopped at the pokemart."

Misty rolled her eyes, "Pokemarts don't sell pokeballs anymore. They don't work on infected Pokemon so they became obsolete." Ash's shoulders slummed in disappointment, "But if you really want one. I've got a couple."

Ash looked up hopefully, "Really? Can I-"

"If," She interrupted, an evil grin forming on her lips, "You admit that I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

Ash scowled, "Only if you admit that I did save your life back with those mankeys."

Misty shrugged, "It's true. You did, but I could have handled them if I wanted to."

Ash was suddenly puzzled by Misty's easy admittance, "But if you could have handled them, then why didn't you?"

Misty hadn't think that through, "Well," she paused thinking, "I didn't want my Pokemon to get hurt." It wasn't a lie. She hadn't wanted her Pokemon to get infected, so she kept them in their pokeballs.

Ash stared at her for a couple of seconds trying to determine whether or not she was lying. After finally resolving that she was telling the truth, he shrugged, "Okay." Mist shot him an expecting look. "What?"

"I admitted that you saved my life..." She trailed off, a smug grin returning to her face.

Ash sighed, "I guess that it might be true that you could take care of yourself if you need to." Then, he quickly added, "But that doesn't change the fact that I'm here to stay!"

Misty just smiled and winked, "Fine. Just make sure that you don't get us into _too_ much trouble." She tossed him an empty pokeball. Then, she turned and began to walk off ahead.

Ash just growled when he caught the ball. Bulbasaur looked at the pair of them and then over to Pikachu, "Bul Bulba Saur Bulba?"

Pikachu just shook his head and sighed, "Pi Pikachu."

Ash looked at the pokeball in his hands and a grin took over his face, "Alright! You ready Bulbasaur?" Bulbasaur shook off his confusion and nodded, "Great! Here ya go!" Ash stuck out the pokeball towards the Pokemon and clicked the button against it's forehead. The ball opened and Bulbasaur turned into a red wisp that retreated into the ball. The ball dinged after a couple of seconds signifying that Bulbasaur was caught, "Yeah! We got a bulbasaur!" Ash leaped for joy again.

Misty just rolled her eyes at Ash's immaturity, "You coming or what?" She yelled from further down the path her two Pokemon by her side.

Ash just smiled, "You ready, Pikachu?" He nodded. "Eevee?" He nodded as well. "Then, let's go!"

_A/N: Alright. So this one was definitely longer then all of the chapters have been so far. Do you guys like longer chapters or should I stick with shorter ones? This one definitely took me a bit longer to write. Either way. I'm having fun with this story. It can get a bit serious at times because of the severity of the situation, but they're still kids, so they have fun. I guess you could say that they're having a pokeball in this A-poke-lypse! Haha! … Please don't stop reading because of that... Until the next installment,(If you can handle my awesome puns) See ya!_


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: Hey, guys. I wanted to update yesterday, but I just didn't have it in me. I was pretty exhausted. Today, however, I'm rearing to go! So, anyway, couple of shoutouts to the reviewers of last chapter. SatoKasu4ever and Carlos Cruz, thank you for your reviews. I very much appreciate your feedback. As for my other readers, thank you for reading, but I would like to know what you guys think so far. Even if it's just a couple words, let me know! Anyway, Happy Reading!_

_Unless I'm suffering from Amnesia and I'm actually in possession of the Pokemon Franchise, I don't own Pokemon._

Misty breathed in the fresh air of the forest. As much as she hated the types of Pokemon in forests, she couldn't deny how beautiful and fresh forests were. Their natural beauty really means a lot considering most of the world has been cut off by big metal walls and other defense mechanisms. This forest was a very rare thing in a world of steel.

"Let's go, Slowpoke! We're not gonna get to the next city if you keep stopping like that," Ash yelled in the distance. He didn't quite understand why Misty was so entranced by the forest. They were just a bunch of trees after all.

He'd returned Eevee to his pokeball so that he could regain his strength after the battle with the beedrills, but Pikachu remained on his shoulder as always. In fact, Ash never officially caught the electric Pokemon. Whenever he'd tried, Pikachu insisted that he hated pokeballs and refused to enter one, even for a second. So, Ash eventually gave up and became content with the knowledge that Pikachu followed him everywhere anyway.

"Hey, wait up! Don't leave me back here." Misty ran as she wiped the sweat from her brow. It was very humid in the forest. Even though she was wearing her usual yellow tank top and jean shorts, she was still very hot under these conditions. She considered bringing out one of her Pokemon to cool her off, but Staryu and Starmie were exhausted after the long battle. Misty wished that she could bring out her other Pokemon, but since it was a fish, it couldn't function on land.

As a member of a family that took care of the Water Pokemon Gym, naturally Misty only had water types. She didn't mind though. Water Pokemon were her favorite anyway. They were majestic and graceful, with a few exceptions of course. She'd grown up around them and there was little that could be done to change her mind.

Misty finally caught up with the raven haired trainer and he flashed his signature smile. Misty quickly wiped the smile off his face with a swift hit on the head, "And I'm no slowpoke. You should really watch your manners around a lady."

Ash simply rubbed his head, "What lady?"

Misty fumed with sudden anger, "Don't you-" Her scolding was cut short, however, by Ash's hand on her mouth. She was about to protest until she saw Ash's expression. It was a look of absolute terror. He was looking up above them. Misty followed his gaze and her insides froze. Hanging from a branch directly above them was a giant Kakuna. The cocoon Pokemon must have been at least ten feet tall and it was a sickly green color that told them both one thing. It was infected.

Misty was happy for Ash's hand being pressed against her mouth because otherwise there would have been nothing to stop her from screaming and waking the creature. Ash's other hand slid into Misty's and, while never taking their eyes of it, he began to slowly and quietly edge them away from the giant bug. They'd almost made it far enough away that they could safely begin to run when Misty tripped pulling Ash down with her. Misty let out a small shriek as they fell and they hit the ground with a dull thud. They hadn't been watching where they were going and Misty's foot had caught on root on the forest floor.

Ash's hand flew to Misty's mouth once again to quiet her and they stared horrified at the giant Pokemon to see whether it had awoken. It appeared as though they hadn't and they let out a silent sigh of relief. Then, they heard a sound that sent a chill up their spines: The sound of cracking. More specifically, it was the sound of a shell cracking. The Kakuna was awake. And it was evolving.

Ash saw no more need to cover Misty's mouth as they watched the cocoon Pokemon glow white. She let loose a terrified scream as the Pokemon changed into the all too familiar shape of the poison bee Pokemon. They jumped to their feet and ran as fast as they could. After ducking under many low branches and pushing through many different bushes and hedges, they happened upon a clearing. They took a moment to catch their breath and looked around. In the distance, they could see a bright light: Sunlight.

"Look! The way out!" Misty yelled.

Ash nodded, "Let's get out of here!" Misty didn't need to be told twice, she sprinted off in the direction of the light with Ash close behind. Pikachu was easily keeping pace with the trainers and would glance back periodically to make sure the beedrill wasn't catching up. He couldn't see the Pokemon, but he could definitely hear it. It's buzzing was louder than the buzzing of the swarm had been.

They'd made it halfway to the exit when Ash suddenly felt a stinging sensation in his leg. He collapsed in pain before glancing down to find that his leg had a small purple barb sticking out. Suddenly, he felt very cold. His vision became blurry and his hearing was muffled. He just barely heard the sound of his own name, "Ash!" Another voice rang out after that and there was a loud cracking sound that he could barely make out before his vision faded to black.

"Happiny? Where are you? Come on. This isn't funny! You could get seriously hurt out here," Brock yelled.

The young man had gone out to collect supplies from the local pokemart when the little Pokemon had run off. He'd followed it outside of town. He knew the guards well and they'd let him through without much question. They knew he could handle himself. After searching the outskirts of the forest, Brock decided that the Pokemon must have scurried inside.

After entering the dense forest he noticed something was wrong immediately. He could see a young girl crouched over something in the distance, but couldn't quite tell what. However, that wasn't the worst part. Past the girl he saw something that made him want to forget about the girl and his small Pokemon and run. At a glance, it just appeared to be large beedrill, but it was flying quickly and Brock was able to pick up a few more details. For instance, it was a sickly green color and it's stingers were rough and covered with millions of small poison barbs. The stinger on it's butt was long and and split into two distinct spikes. It was infected, but it was also more than that. It was mutated.

"Ash!" Brock could hear the sound of the girl's scream over the loud buzzing of the giant Pokemon. Deciding to be brave, he ran to meet her while tossing a pokeball.

"Onix, go! Use Rock Tomb!" Out of the pokeball came a giant rock snake which, upon release, immediately flung a barrage of rocks at the incoming wasp Pokemon. The bug hadn't been expecting this and didn't have much time to evade the attack. It was hit directly and was quickly buried by the large stones.

Brock crouched down next to the girl, "Let's go. The Rock Tomb will only slow that thing down."

The girl looked up with tears in her eyes, "We can't just leave him!" It was then that Brock took notice of the thing that she'd been crouched over. It was a boy. He appeared to have fallen unconscious. Brock immediately took notice of a small purple barb that was injected into the boy's leg. Happiny was stationed next to the boy as well, apparently attempting to assist in taking care of him. _That must be why she ran like that. She could tell that something was wrong and ran off to help._

Resolving to reward the baby Pokemon later, Brock looked back at his rock type Pokemon, "Onix we need to get out of here. Can you carry this kid on your back?" Onix nodded, "Alright, then let's go!" Brock slung the boy over his shoulder and carried him over to Onix with Happiny and Pikachu following. The rock snake lowered it's head and Brock placed Ash on while getting on himself. He then looked to the girl, "Are you coming?"

Misty shook out of her daze and nodded joining Brock and Ash on Onix's head. Brock was taller than both she and Ash and he was very tan. He had spikey brown hair and his eyes were dark, but that was mostly because he squinted. Misty found herself wondering if he always squinted like that.

As they exited the forest and entered the the bright sunlight, they could faintly hear the sounds of buzzing, but the beedrill apparently thought it too much effort to follow them as it never came out of the forest. Brock looked over at Misty who was looking concerned at Ash, "Don't worry about him." She looked up curiously, "As far as I can tell, the poison in his system is minor at best. He could make a full recovery even without treatment. Luckily, the local Pokemon Center has the items necessary to treat him anyway, so he'll be fine in a few hours." He smiled at her, but expression didn't lighten. She simply went back to staring at the boy. Brock sighed, "Who are you guys anyway? You're not from around here, so what were you two doing in the forest?"

Her voice was quiet, "My name's Misty and this is Ash. He and I were trying to make it to Pewter City to find someone who might be here." The realization hit her, "To be honest, neither of us have any idea where he might be. All we know is his name."

Brock raised an eyebrow, "Who are you looking for?"

She looked up at him again, "His name is Brock Slate. Do you know him?"

Brock frowned, "Why are you looking for him?"

Misty's expression lit up slightly, "So, you do know him? Can you tell me where he is?"

"Answer my question." Brock said forcefully.

Misty grew quiet again, "Uhm. Well, we heard that he might know something about the Pokemon Virus. We're-" She paused as she decided whether or not to tell this boy of their plan, "We're trying to learn more about it."

"Well, I can tell you right now that he doesn't know much of anything about the Virus, so I'd just let it go." Brock tried to hide his shame. He'd been stupid and that's why he'd been fired. He didn't want anyone else to know of his failure.

"Please," Misty pleaded. Brock looked at her and his stone cold expression faltered. Her eyes were sparkling as tears built up behind them. She looked like a wreck, from her hair being matted and frayed to her clothes being dirty and torn.

Brock sighed, "Fine. Come by the old city gym at midnight. He'll be there and he'll answer any questions you might have. In the meantime, we're here. I'll help you take Ash inside and then I'll be off."

Misty looked around. He was right, she hadn't even noticed that they'd passed the guards, "Thank you, but- but I don't even know your name."

Brock just smiled as he helped her off the onix and threw Ash back over his shoulder, "I'm a friend."

_A/N: So, I feel like that's a good place to stop for now. I like dramatic irony. We all know that Brock is Brock, but Misty doesn't and Ash certainly doesn't. In retrospect, it's not that "dramatic," but whatever. How'd you guys like this chapter? I kind of feel like it's a bit of a filler chapter to introduce Brock, but I don't know. I'll try and update over the course of the next couple days, but I'm gonna be kind of busy, so we'll see how that goes. By the way, you may have noticed I took the contest and ikarishipping mentioning out because I'm just not sure how I'm gonna fit it in. If you guys want it back, let me know and I'll work on it. Thank you again to all those who have reviewed and favorited and followed. I'm very grateful for your support. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: Hey, guys. Sorry about not updating. As I mentioned last time, I've been pretty busy lately. And I'm afraid I'm not going to be getting any more free time anytime soon. For that reason, I'm gonna try and make this chapter as long as possible for you guys. I'll probably explain more at the end, but in the meantime... Happy Reading!_

_Also! Quick shoutout to SatoKasu4Ever for her all of the reviews that she's supplied so far. I can't express my gratitude enough and I'd love to hear from more of you if you get the chance. But, anyway, storytime!_

_I don't own Pokemon. Don't really feel like making it funny... So, go watch some cat videos or something._

Ash was running. He was running as fast as he possibly could, but it was still catching up, "Misty! What are we gonna do?" He turned to look at her, but she wasn't there. She was gone. "Misty! Pikachu, we lost Misty!" He looked down to find that his pikachu was gone, too. "Pikachu!" He was alone. Alone except for the thing following him. He could never get a good look at it. It was constantly shifting and changing. And it was quickly bridging the gap between them.

Ash pumped his legs as hard as physically possible, but he tripped. His face slammed against the ground as he skidded to a halt. Before he had time to react, it caught him. He looked into it's eyes. There was a darkness in them. A darkness like he'd never seen. And yet, beneath it all, Ash could swear he saw a glimmer of light. Regardless, it's hand descended on Ash blocking out his vision as everything faded to black.

Ash opened his eyes and everything was bright white. Ash sat up quickly and looked around for the creature, but it was nowhere to be seen. In fact, he was somewhere completely different.

Ash was no longer on the cold ground. He was in a bed. He was inside a small white room filled with machines, one of which was connected to his wrist. Before Ash could decide what to do, his thoughts were interrupted, "Ash! You're finally awake!"

Ash looked for the source of the voice. To his relief he saw that it was Misty. She was standing in the doorway to the room holding someone else that Ash was happy to see okay: Pikachu. Pikachu immediately sprung out of Misty's grasp and cuddled close to Ash. Ash smiled down at the electric Pokemon, but it quickly faded again, "What do you mean 'finally awake'? How long have I been asleep? And where are we?"

Misty rolled her eyes, "You're in a Pokemon Center, stupid. And you've been passed out for about 4 hours now. You were stung by a poison sting attack. Nurse Joy says that status ailments affect humans more than they affect Pokemon. You were poisoned, Ash, but we got you the antidote. You're perfectly fine now. You've just been sleeping." Misty smiled kindly at him.

Ash looked at Misty as if he wasn't sure whether or not he wanted to tell her something. After a couple seconds, he decided against it and said, "So, does this mean I can leave?" He didn't wait for an answer. He began to undo himself from the machine and climb out of bed.

"Oh, no!" Misty ran over to Ash and placed her hands on either of his shoulders forcing him back down. "You're not going anywhere, Mister. Not until Nurse Joy says it's okay."

Ash replied in a stubbornly childish tone, "Fine. Why don't you just go get her then?"

Misty stood up straight and nodded forcefully, "I will! I'll be right back." And she purposefully marched out of the room and down the outside hall.

Pikachu hopped off Ash's chest and looked in the direction that she'd gone, "Pikachupi?"

Ash immediately sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, "Don't worry about her, Pikachu. She's just acting crazy like my mom does when I accidentally get hurt." He undid the IV on his wrist and stood up. He paused thoughtfully, "It must be a girl thing. I can't think of any other reason than that. Can you?" Pikacha nodded, but Ash was no longer paying attention. He looked around to see that his pokeballs and his jacket were on the table next to the bed, but his clothes were gone. He was currently wearing a lime green gown that tied in the back. "I'm wearing a dress?" Ash shouted.

Misty and Nurse Joy ran through the door at the exclamation, "What happened?" Misty said through breaths.

Ash looked very seriously at Misty, "Why am I wearing a dress?"

Misty smacked him over the head. After explaining to Ash the difference between a dress and a gown, Nurse Joy began to explain Ash's recovery, "... were expelled from your body almost immediately. I've never seen anyone recover so quickly. In fact, the only reason you slept for so long is because you're such a deep sleeper." Joy giggled.

Ash rolled his eyes as Misty joined in the light laughter, "Yeah. Yeah. Very funny." He directed his attention towards Joy, "Does this mean I can go now?" Then, he paused as he realized something, "Wait, a minute. Why are you here, Nurse Joy. They need you in Viridian."

"Actually, Ash, this is Nurse Joy's sister. She lives here and cares for Pokemon and humans just like many in their family," Misty explained.

Ash just stared confusedly, "Are they twins?

Misty placed her hand over her face in attempt to slow her growing aggravation, "No, Ash. They just look alike. A lot of families are like that."

Ash seemed to accept this answer before turning to Nurse Joy, "So, _can_ I leave now?"

The nurse gave a friendly smile and nodded, "Yes. You can go now, Ash. Go ahead. But I'm afraid it's very late now. You may not want to go wandering around the city at this time of day."

Ash was about to state how he would be perfectly fine with going back to sleep when Misty interrupted, "Actually, Nurse Joy, someone is expecting us soon." She glanced at the clock. It read 11:48 PM. "_Very _soon."

Ash looked puzzled at Misty. He had been unconscious during the conversation with the tan boy and Misty didn't feel like explaining much. She simply said, "Brock Slate is going to meet with us at the local gym in about ten minutes. If we want to see him, we have to go." Ash took a second to process what she'd said and decided it better not to question it.

He nodded, "Alright, Mist. Let's go." He was about to stroll out of the room with the gown flapping around him, but then he stopped, "Uhm... Where are my clothes?"

Joy suddenly became embarrassed, "Oh. Well, Ash. I'm afraid that we had to dispose of the clothes you were wearing during the time of the incident because of the critical state of your condition upon your arrival. We were worried that they could have been contaminated by the infection. We realized later that this was an overreaction, so we proceeded in finding new clothes for you." She then walked over the the table and opened a cabinet. She lifted out the contents: A plain black t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans.

Ash thought for a moment about whether his mom would mind that his clothes had been thrown out before looking very seriously at the Pokemon nurse and said, "Do you have any clean underwear?"

After another swift hit to the head, Nurse Joy handed the clothes which did in fact contain clean undergarments to Ash and she and Misty left the room, so Ash could change. Misty looked up as the door finally opened to see Ash standing there wearing the clothes he'd been given and his white-collared, blue jacket. He looked slightly saddened though, "What is it, Ash?"

Ash simply rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "Well, I mean. Now, I don't have a hat." Resolving to never expect anything more than stupidity from Ash in the future Misty reached into her bag and pulled out a baseball cap that she kept.

It had been her father's. He'd apparently sent in a bunch of postcards to receive the hat, but Misty didn't see what the big deal was. It was just a red and white hat with a small green "L" on the front. She kept it as a reminder of her father, but keeping it made her sad. She preferred the idea of Ash wearing it, so that maybe she could begin to associate it with something else. He also needed it more. His hair looked ridiculous without a hat.

"Here. Take this one." She held it out to Ash and his eyes widened as he looked at it. He grabbed it and looked at it with awe.

"Do you know what this is?" Ash asked with his mouth gaping open.

"No." Misty looked confused at Ash. Was there something special about it that even Ash could see that she couldn't?

"This is an Official Pokemon League Expo hat." His expression faded, "There hasn't been a Pokemon League in a long time. Where did you get it?"

Misty looked down at her feet, "It was my dad's."

Ash's mouth fell open slightly this time, "Then, I can't take it. It's gotta mean a lot to you, right?" He held it out to Misty.

She pushed it back gently, "It does, Ash. But that's _why_ I'm giving it to you." Ash didn't lower his hand, he just stared with a confused expression on his face. Misty went on, "Just promise me that you'll take good care of it?"

After a few more moments, Ash lowered his hand and smiled, "Of course, Mist. I'll protect this hat with my life." He laughed to himself and Misty smiled. She liked that he used her nickname so casually like that. He placed the old hat on his head and stood proudly for her to admire.

Misty just rolled her eyes and grabbed his arm, "Let's go, you idiot." They both laughed as they walked out of the Pokemon Center and into the darkness of the night.

Misty had been outside at night before plenty of times, but it still managed to make her hairs stand on end. Ash seemed unfazed by it, however, and his casual demeanor comforted her slightly. Nurse Joy had given her directions to the gym prior to their departure, so Misty lead the way. After a few wrong turns, they found the old building.

It seemed to be made completely out of stone playing into the theme of the once rock-type gym. Ash and Misty gazed at it for a few moments before nodding to one another and silently passing under the archway and through the unlocked doors to the inside.

Inside was no more inviting than outside. It was very dark and from what light did enter the room all the pair could see were rocks jutting out of the ground and littering the floor. Misty wasn't sure if it had always been like this as part of the them or if it had just gotten this way when it had been abandoned.

Their thoughts were interrupted when a deep voice echoed through the room, "Welcome to the Pewter City gym."

Misty spoke up. "H- Hello? B- Brock?" She stammered. The voice struck fear inside her, but she couldn't help but feel like she'd heard it before.

The voice boomed back, "Yes. It is I, Brock Slate. What do you want from me?"

Misty grew braver as she remembered their mission, "We're here to ask you a few questions."

"About what?"

"The Pokemon Virus," Ash interjected, "We came here to learn more about it. We heard that you might know a thing or two."

"Why do you wish to know about the virus? What could two children possibly do with information like that?"

"We're not children!" Ash yelled, "And we want to know how to stop it."

The room was silent for a while after that. Finally, the sound of footsteps could be heard as Brock emerged from the darkness. Misty recognized him immediately, "You're Brock?"

He nodded, "Yes. I'm Brock Slate."

Misty was confused, "But, earlier, when I asked who you were, you could have just told me then."

Ash was even more confused, "Wait, you know him?"

Misty tore her gaze away from the squinting boy and looked at Ash, "He saved you from the beedrill. If it weren't for him showing up-" She stopped, "Well, who knows what could have happened?"

Brock wasn't interested in their new topic of conversation, "What do you mean you 'want to know how to stop it'? If I knew how to stop it, I would have done something by now. And besides," he paused as he lowered his head solemnly, "it can't be stopped."

"Sure, it can!" Ash said determinedly, "We just have to figure out how to do it."

Brock looked up curiously. This boy, Ash, seemed to be absolutely certain of what he was saying. How could he be so hopeful? He shook off the thoughts, _Stop it, Brock. No use getting your hopes up only for them to get crushed again. These kids will just have to learn on their own._ He looked at the pair of them. Ash looked determined and Misty looked sad, but she had a glimmer of hope in her eyes as well. _I might as well humor them for now though,_ he thought.

"Well, if you insist, there's a little I know that might be of some use," Ash nodded excitedly. Even Misty seemed to light up at the change of pace, "You see, this virus does more than just make Pokemon mean. It makes them strong. Very strong. It makes them bigger, faster, smarter. You name it and they've got you beat." He paused to see if they were discouraged in any way, but they just looked on at him hoping for more information. He sighed, "Which is why some of the infected you've seen are bigger than normal. However, it seems that some Pokemon are affected more than others. Like that beedrill in the forest. I've been in the forest a bunch of times since the outbreak and I've only ever seen beedrill that are twice, or maybe three times, the size of a normal one, but never that big.

"There have been many sightings of Pokemon like this. Pokemon that are much bigger than normal infected. Pokemon with weird physical differences that make them more dangerous. These mutated Pokemon, or 'mutes' as some call them, seem to have a higher concentration of the virus contained inside of them. If you really want to learn something about the infected Pokemon, then that's a good place to start," He finished.

Misty thought for a while letting all the information sink into her brain as she thought. Ash thought he could see gears turning in her head. Finally, she spoke up, "How are we supposed to study one of these Pokemon if their so dangerous? It's not like they'll sit still while we examine it."

Brock nodded, "Well, that leaves you with the option of killing it-"

Ash interjected, "No. No way are we gonna kill any Pokemon."

Brock looked slightly irritated at having been interrupted, "_Or_ you could capture it."

Misty shook her head, "Infected Pokemon can't be contained in pokeballs. The balls aren't strong enough to hold them."

Brock continued, this time with a little more aggravation in his voice at being interrupted again, "Which is _why_ you have to use special equipment." He suddenly turned around and retreated back into the darkness.

"Wait, Brock, where are you-" Ash started.

"Calm down. I'm just going to get something," Brock interrupted. "Stay there!" He added forcefully.

After a few minutes footsteps could be heard again as Brock returned. This time he walked right up to the pair and he was holding a fairly large metal box. He placed it on the ground in front of them. It had a nine-digit dialer similar to a telephone on top. Brock inputted a four-digit password so quickly that neither Misty nor Ash could see what it was.

Steam blew out the creases on the sides and the top opened automatically so that it flipped away from Ash and Misty on a hinge. They peered inside to see two cylinders. Before they had the chance to ask any questions, Brock began to explain, "This," he lifted one of the cylinders carefully out of the box, "is called a Pokemon Virus Canister, or a PV Canister. This has a much higher containment and catch rate than a pokeball of any kind," he said proudly. "However," he added, "each canister is only good for one shot. Which means that if you miss, you're basically done for."

Ash stood puzzled, "So, do you throw it like a pokeball?"

Brock shook his head slightly amused by the question, "No, Ash. You shoot it like a cannon. A beam like one that's used to release or return a Pokemon shoots out of this end," He pointed to the open end that had been facing the floor, "And if it hits the Pokemon correctly, then it will capture it and keep it inside. Then, you just keep it in there until you're ready to take it out and examine it more closely."

After a few moments, Ash and Misty nodded. "Alright, cool. So, how do we use it?" Ash asked as he reached for the device.

Brock pulled it out of Ash's reach, "You? Oh, no." He placed the canister back into the case and closed it, "You're not using anything. These are mine. You can't have them."

Misty's anger began to build, "If we can't have them, then why did you go through the trouble of showing them to us and explaining how they worked?"

Brock shrugged, "Well, on the off-chance that you happen to find one of your own PV canisters to use, now you know what to do with them."

"You mean, you're really not gonna help us?" Ash's voice sounded sad. He hadn't predicted this.

"Well, uh-" Brock began.

Misty interrupted, "Let's go, Ash. He's given up. We'll go find someone that's actually willing to try and fix this." She grabbed Ash's hand and turned away from Brock. They began to walk away.

"Wait!" They turned to face the older boy, "I- I'll help you." He paused then he added, "But just this one time. Then, you two are on your own. You got that?"

Ash smiled wide, "Got it!" They then continued towards the door with a slight spring in their step, "See you tomorrow, Brock!"

They walked through the doors and as soon as Brock was out of hearing range Misty turned to Ash, "I _can't _ believe that worked _again_."

_A/N: Yay! The trio are together and about to embark on a dangerous mission. This sure is exciting, right? Yes? Maybe? Well, feel free to let me know in a review. But like I said at the beginning of this chapter, I'm going to be very busy for the next week or so. In fact, I wouldn't expect any form of update until at the earliest this thursday. I'm sorry to disappoint anyone. I really am. Especially because I love that some of you are really enjoying this. But I'm just not gonna have any time to write for the next few days. I tried to make this one as long as possible, but I really think that this ending works. So, anyway. Thank you all for reading. It means the world to me. It really does. Please Review and Until the next installment, See ya!_


	11. Chapter 11

_Hey, Guys! I'm back. Sorry that took so long. I can only hope that those of you that were patient with me will like everything that's to come. Anyway, I'd prefer not to delay any further. Quick shoutout to my reviewer, americanyouthstinky. I appreciate your feedback. I hope to hear from you and many others in the near future. Happy Reading!_

_I don't own Pokemon, but I do own a pack of gum... So there._

Brock paced back and forth at the edge of the city. He was dressed in his normal attire of a short-sleeved, orange t-shirt, green vest, and brown khakis. The guards eyed him curiously. They'd known Brock for a long time. He was usually so put together, but he currently looked extremely nervous and on edge. He was muttering to himself and every so often he would check his watch or look over his shoulder at the empty street.

It was still fairly early in the morning and the two guards couldn't imagine that anyone else would be out and about yet. When they had tried to question Brock about it, however, he simply mumbled something about some research he had to complete and turned away. That had confused them more. For one thing, Brock was no longer a research assistant, but it also meant that Brock might be intending to study the virus or even a Pokemon infected with it. And Brock hated anything to do with the virus.

They, of course, didn't know all the details, but from what they understood Brock had learned something while he was away as an assistant and whatever it was had changed his entire perspective on the virus. In fact, no one even really knew why he'd been fired. The guards musings came to a sudden halt when Brock's voice rang out, "There you two are! What took you so long?"

Misty had woken up early that morning to prepare for the day's events. She made sure all her Pokemon were fully healed. She picked out the best outfit to keep light on her feet in case of emergency. She stocked up on plenty of antidotes and potions. She'd even taken the time to give her Pokemon a pep talk so that they would be motivated enough to complete the task at hand.

Ash had slept in. He'd rolled out of bed, thrown on the same clothes as the day previous and gorged himself on food while Misty was out and about. He'd even forgotten to bring his pokeballs when they left the first time. They'd made it almost halfway to the edge of town when he remembered. He ran back to retrieve them, but they'd still been very late to the meeting.

"_Him."_ Misty glared at Ash.

He threw his hands up, "Me? How was this my fault. _You're _the one who took a good half hour picking out what clothes to wear."

"Yes, but I woke up early enough so that we would still get here on time. _You_ barely got out of bed with enough time to put on clean underwear," Misty smirked.

Ash's face flushed red, "And how would _you_ know the condition of my underwear?"

Misty's ears turned pink, "Oh, stop being so immature!"

"You started it?" Ash yelled back.

"Did not!" She retorted.

"Did so!" Pikachu's cheeks began to spark from his perch atop Ash's shoulder.

"DID NOT!"

"D-" Ash began.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Brock interrupted, "Geez! You two fight like an old married couple."

"Ew!" Ash and Misty said in unison.

"_Like _a married couple," Brock specified rolling his eyes, "Now, can we get down to business?"

Ash and Misty shared a look of distaste with one another before promptly turning away with a huff and saying, again in unison, "Fine." Pikachu appeared to calm down as well.

Brock sighed and massaged his temple, _What did I get myself into?_ He thought.

The guards let them through though they appeared even more confused than before. Why had Brock been waiting for two young children and where were they even going that they had to leave the city?

Ash strutted out in front with Misty nipping at his heels stubbornly while Brock trailed by a few feet while he continued to deal with his headache. Make that _two_ headaches.

"Hey, Brock?" Ash said over his shoulder.

"Hm?" Brock responded barely paying attention.

"Why did you get fired?" Ash asked innocently.

Brock stopped. "What?" Ash and Misty stopped, too. Ash was looking confusedly at Brock while Misty looked confusedly at both of them. "Where did you hear that?" Brock continued.

"This morning when I was eating breakfast, I was talking to the Nurse Joy here. I told her that we had gone to see you the previous night and how you were a very smart Pokemon Researcher."

Brock couldn't help but smile a little at this, "Well, thank-"

Ash continued, "She disagreed." Brock deadpanned. "She said that you were never actually a Pokemon Researcher. Only an assistant to one. And you got fired. I was just wondering why."

"Well, Ash, I don't really think that's any of your business," Brock said.

Misty interjected, "Actually, Brock, if you were fired, then how do we even know that we can believe what you told us already?"

Brock stuttered, "W- Well, if you don't want my help-"

Ash interrupted, "We do! I believe you. Honest." He shot a glare at Misty, "I just wanted to know because you seem so smart and I couldn't think of a reason why you would get fired."

This time Brock blushed a little bit, "I don't know. Ash. I haven't told anyone. Not even my family."

"Please, Brock?" Ash looked pleadingly at the older boy. Misty followed his lead and flashed her saddest puppy growlithe eyes. Even Pikachu put on a sad look.

A sigh emanated from Brock's throat before he muttered, "Fine."

"Yay!" Ash yelled.

"You know that's not going to work every time?" Brock stated.

Ash shrugged, "If you say so..." Then, added excitedly, "Now, tell us!" Misty and Pikachu both nodded enthusiastically.

"Well, it's a bit of a long story and neither of you will understand it completely," Brock sighed dreamily, "You've never been in love."

Ash and Pikachu suddenly became much less interested in the story. Misty, however, perked up even more. "You see," Brock continued, "The researcher I assisted was a beautiful woman by the name of Professor Philena Ivy. Her beauty was only exceeded by her brilliance. And her brilliance was only exceeded by my love for her."

Ash and Pikachu looked bored and even Misty appeared to being growing less interested, "I worked with her for a few months when the day finally came that I couldn't stand to keep myself from her any longer." He paused and looked down at his feet. He suddenly appeared very solemn and ashamed. "I professed my love for her..."

Misty's look changed from bored to sympathetic, "She didn't feel the same way?" Brock shook his head.

"Right. Lovey Dovey Junk. Can we go now?" Ash was much less compassionate.

Misty shot him a glare, "Ash! Can't you see Brock is upset?"

Ash looked puzzled, "Why is he upset? Some girl didn't like him? Who cares? Girls aren't that important."

Misty hit him on the head, "I don't know why I try with you, Ash Ketchum! You'll never understand love."

"Ow." Ash rubbed the part of his head that Misty had hit, "Oh, and you do?"

"As a matter of fact, I do." Misty crossed her arms defiantly.

"Really?" Ash raised an eyebrow sarcastically, "And who do_ you_ love, Misty?"

Misty eyes went wide and her ears and cheeks turned pink. She hadn't predicted this response. "Well, uh..."

"Alright, you two. I'm stopping this before it escalates. I got us off topic. The point is that we have a job to do and talking about who loves or loved who won't get us any closer to finding a cure to this virus," Brock said coming to Misty's rescue.

Ash suddenly turned towards Brock again excitedly, "Wait. Does this mean that you're gonna help us find it?"

"I didn't say that," Brock replied quickly.

Misty raised an eyebrow, "You said 'us.'"

"Look. We really don't have time for this. We need to get going if we're gonna catch this thing." Brock was trying to change the subject, but he still had a point, "We've been standing out in the open for a while now and if we stay much longer then we could get swarmed by infected."

Ash and Misty reluctantly dropped the argument and they continued on towards the forest. After having seen what was in store the last time they had entered the forest, the looming trees seemed to grow even more ominous than before. The very idea of what they contained sent a shiver down Misty's spine. They stood in front of the forest for a few moments before Brock finally said, "You guys ready?"

Ash nodded and put on his determined face and suddenly Misty didn't feel so scared anymore. She knew that no matter what happened, Ash would do everything he could to protect them and their Pokemon. After a few moments, Misty smiled and nodded as well, "Let's do it."

They stepped under the dense canopy of the forest and immediately it grew much darker around them. The only light they could see either came from behind them or peeked through the leaves above. It was quiet aside from the occasional sound of a twig snapping underfoot or a casual breeze moving through the trees.

It was almost like for one moment the virus didn't exist. The forest was just a peaceful group of trees and they were safe from the dangers of the world. This feeling was quickly dissipated when a buzzing sound began to emanate in the distance. It didn't sound like the a normal buzzing, but like the sound of of a group of Pokemon buzzing in unison. They recognized the sound to be the sound the mutant beedrill had made. Misty tensed up at the sound and Ash immediately pulled a pokeball from his pocket.

Brock stepped forward a bit and placed his arm out signifying them to halt, "Listen," He began in a low voice. "It's faint. It's still far away and it's not growing any louder so it's not approaching either. If we're going to catch this thing then we need the benefit of catching it off guard."

Ash frowned, "What do you mean?"

Brock put his finger to his lips, "Lower your voice." Ash shrank a little bit realizing how loud he had been, "We need to sneak up on it. Then, we can immobilize it and catch it without much of a problem." Ash nodded his approval. Brock continued, "So, I think the best plan of action would be to approach it in a way where he couldn't see us coming." He pulled a pokeball from his belt and released the Pokemon inside.

The giant snake form of Onix appeared in the bright white light and it looked at Brock expectantly. "Alright, Onix. I'm gonna need you to dig us a tunnel in the direction of that buzzing sound. Do you hear it?" Onix lifted his head for a moment listening and Ash found himself wondering how the rock snake heard anything at all if it didn't have any ears. After a few seconds, Onix nodded and Brock continued, "Dig as quietly and carefully as you can so we don't alert the Pokemon to our position, got it?" Onix nodded again and immediately began to burrow a hole in the ground.

Ash put his pokeball away and looked up at Pikachu, "You ready, buddy?" Pikachu nodded. When the hole looked big enough Ash crept up to edge and prepared to jump in.

"Wait, Ash." Brock pulled him back by the collar. Pikachu almost fell off his shoulder. "You can't just jump in."

Ash wiggled out of Brock's hold, "Why not?"

Brock's face scrunched up a bit as he thought of what he wanted to say exactly, "Well," he started, "honestly, after thinking about it for a while, I'm not sure how comfortable I am with you two out here at all. This really is no place for children."

Ash didn't contain himself, "I'm not a child!" Brock attempted to silence him, but he didn't respond, "I can take care of myself and I don't need you treating me like a baby!"

When Ash finally stopped yelling, Brock replied with a low voice, "Look, Ash. I know you're not a baby, but I don't think you understand how dangerous it is out here." He was looking around cautiously for any sign of Pokemon that might attack.

"Oh, I understand," Ash wasn't yelling now, but he was still angry, "I understand that you think that I can't handle it out here. Well, if that's what you think..." Ash paused as he growled at the older boy, "then, let's battle."

All three other heads looked at him confused and mildly surprised, "Battle?" Misty said, "Ash, nobody's really _battled_ in years. Since the Pokemon League was shut down and all the gym's closed, the only reason to battle is to survive."

Ash shook his head, "People use to battle to prove how strong they are. To show off their skills as a trainer. Well, I need to show Brock how strong I am. And the only way I can do that right now is if I battle him."

Misty was about to talk again when Brock spoke first, "Fine." Misty looked at him surprised, "If you really want to battle me then we'll battle." Ash smiled slyly, "But," Brock continued, "If I win, then we all go back to Pewter immediately and forget about finding some cure."

"And if I win," Ash said, "Then, you have to come with me and Misty on our search. _And _you can't use our age as an excuse to keep us from doing dangerous things."

Brock thought for a moment, but nodded, "Deal." Before they knew it, they were standing a good distance from one another and preparing for the battle, "This will be a one on one battle. First Pokemon to faint loses." Ash nodded his agreement.

"Let's go, Pikachu!" Pikachu leapt off Ash's shoulder having decided to just roll with it and got in his battling stance.

Brock smirked, _This will be easier than I thought._ "Go, Geodude!" He released the smaller, rock type Pokemon from his pokeball. Unlike Pikachu who had been present during the conversation about the battle, Geodude was very confused as to why they were battling another trainer in the middle of the forest. Brock simply said, "Alright, Geodude. I know we haven't seriously battled anyone in a while, but you're going to have to trust me, okay?"

His Pokemon nodded, "Geodude!"

Brock smiled, "You ready, Ash?"

Ash smiled, too. This was his first real Pokemon battle. He was excited. He wasn't fighting for his life or for anyone else's. He was fighting to prove himself. He was putting his pride on the line and he wouldn't lose if he could help it. "Let's show him what we're made of, Pikachu."

The yellow rodent nodded, "Pika!"

Ash turned his new hat around so the brim face backwards, "Let's go!"

_A/N: How about that? A good, old-fashioned Pokemon battle. I didn't want to squeeze it in at the end of this chapter so, I'm afraid you guys are gonna have to wait a little bit for it. Anyway, I'm glad to be back and writing. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and all the ones to come. Please Review! I would never have had the motivation to come this far without your support. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: Hey, guys. I hope you guys like the story so far. I'm beginning to wonder about something, but I'll get to that later. Shoutout to SatoKasu4Ever, not only for the most recent review I've received but the many reviews and support over the course of this story. I really appreciate it and it's kept me going when I was feeling unsure so thank you. I'd also like to thank my other reviewer who goes by the name "Um". Thanks for pointing out that little slip up a few chapters back. I fixed it as soon as I saw your review. I hope to hear from both of you and many others in future chapters. But anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Happy Reading!_

_So, I was thinking it might just be easier to buy Pokemon because saying that I don't own it every chapter is just annoying. Which I don't. I don't own Pokemon..._

"Pikachu use thundershock!" Ash bellowed.

Pikachu immediately began to spark from his red cheeks, "Pika-CHU!". A small line of electricity flew at Brock's Geodude, but neither the trainer nor the Pokemon looked at all worried and after a few seconds Ash would realize why. The electric attack made direct contact with the rock type, but it didn't even flinch. The electricity simply faded and Brock smiled.

"You don't stand a chance, Ash. Electricity doesn't work against ground type Pokemon like Geodude." He laughed to himself, "Alright, Geodude. Use Rock Polish and then follow up with a Rock Throw attack!"

Geodude nodded and Ash could have sworn that the rock-ground Pokemon was smirking as well, "Geo. Geodude." It began to glow and shimmer slightly and when the light faded, Geodude looked sleaker and had a bit of a luster to it. Then, quicker than Ash would have thought possible, Geodude picked up a handful of rocks and threw them at Pikachu.

"Pikachu, dodge them!" Ash yelled desperately, but he reacted too late. The rocks landed a direct hit against Pikachu and he skidded across the ground as he cried out in pain. Ash's eyes widened, "Pikachu..." Before he could rush to Pokemon's aid, however, he was back on his feet and ready to go.

"Impressive, but I'm afraid you won't be able to take another hit like that." His face suddenly grew stoney and cold, "Give up, Ash. I don't want to hurt you or Pikachu."

Ash looked at Pikachu. The little electric type could barely stand. He wanted to win, but he didn't want Pikachu to get hurt like this. "What do you think, Pikachu?"

The yellow mouse turned to Ash and fixed a determined look on his face and shook his head, "Pi Pika Pichu, Pikapi."

Ash nodded and smiled, "We're not going to give up that easily, Brock. Just you watch. We can still win."

Brock just shook his head, "Alright, Ash, but don't say I didn't warn you."

Ash quickly examined his surroundings. The only thing he could see in any given direction were trees. Ash stood puzzled by what he could possibly do to overpower the rock type when Pikachu only knew electric attacks. Then, an idea began to bubble in his heads. Maybe he couldn't damage Geodude directly, but he could damage other things.

Ash smiled, "The thing is, Brock. I think we really should have been the ones to warn you." Brock looked puzzled by Ash's comment, but before he could do much else to react, Ash was already setting his plan in motion, "Pikachu, use thundershock on the branches! Knock them down!" Brock and Misty both looked confused now. Even Pikachu looked confused, but he listened all the same.

"Piii-kaaa-CHUUU!" Several bolts of electricity shot out from the small rodent and hit some of the overhanging branches that were around them. The electricity was strong enough to weaken the branches and they began to fall all over the place. Brock and Misty immediately dove for cover, but Ash stood his ground.

Pikachu could easily evade the branches, but Geodude wasn't as lucky. Many of the branches hit it square on the head leaving it more dazed and confused with each hit. Brock eventually regained his senses and yelled, "Geodude, use defense curl." Geodude shook off its confusion and pulled its arms in close to itself. The branches seemed to bounce off it after that and when they finally stopped falling Geodude was left damaged, but still standing. "Are you crazy, Ash?!" Brock yelled, "You could have gotten someone seriously hurt!"

Now it was Ash's turn to look puzzled. He looked around at the scene before him. Many large branches littered the ground. Misty was rubbing a small bruise that she received on her arm from diving out of the way. Brock looked dirty and a bit battered himself. And Pikachu looked absolutely exhausted. Ash lowered his head in shame, "I-I'm sorry. I didn't realize how much damage I'd done."

Brock's expression softened, "It's okay, Ash. You just have to think more about the consequences of your actions. Especially when you're planning to do something as risky as this," He said indicating the scene around them.

Ash looked up at Brock and nodded, "Thanks, Brock. I understand. I just wanted to show you that I'm not just some stupid kid."

Brock just smiled, "Ash. You are a stupid kid." Before Ash could retaliate, Brock continued, "But you've got a lot of confidence and determination. And, believe it or not, you can be pretty clever, too. You can definitely handle yourself out here," he paused, "But what kind of guy would I be if I didn't tag along anyway to make sure that you don't do anything stupid?"

Ash's jaw dropped, "Does this mean..?"

Brock nodded, but before he could talk more his expression changed to that of horror and shock, "Everyone, get down!" Brock dove over to Geodude and wrapped his arms around it protectively while Ash and Misty looked to see what he'd been staring at, but that's when they realized they hadn't been listening as intently as before. The buzzing sound had grown in intensity. The Beedrill was coming and it was about to attack.

Beedrill's stingers were glowing as he prepared to use his Twineedle attack. However, the trainers had failed to hear another sound. The sound of a large rock snake burrowing through the ground at an increased pace. Onix erupted from the ground in front of Ash and suddenly wrapped itself around the bug type Pokemon before dragging it back down into the hole from whence it came.

Ash stood shocked for a moment until he heard Misty shout his name, "Ash, snap out of it. We need to stick to the plan." Ash spun on his heel to face her. She was no longer gripping her injured arm. She was running over to him with her arm outstretched. Ash reached out and grabbed her hand and let her pull him to safety while Pikachu kept right behind them. Brock was also standing now and having returned Geodude to its pokeball was nervously anticipating what would happen next.

He was mumbling to himself, "I should have never agreed to battle. Now, Geodude's weakened and we don't stand a chance."

Ash stopped to stand next to him and ignored Misty's continual tugging, "You're wrong." Brock suddenly looked at him having forgotten that he was still there, "We still stand a chance. We just need to change the plan a little."

Brock looked stressed so Ash didn't take his sharp tone too offensively, "And what do you suggest we do, Ash?"

Ash just smiled, "I've got a plan."

After explaining his plan to Brock and Misty, Ash went to his position to prepare. They would wait until Onix and Beedrill appeared again and Pikachu would use thunderwave on them. Onix wouldn't be affected because he was part ground type, but Beedrill would be paralyzed allowing Onix to release it for the rest of the plan. Staryu and Starmie would then launch their water gun attacks at Beedrill soaking it to its core. Then, Pikachu and Onix would deal the final blows with their combination of Rock Tomb and Thundershock. If all went smoothly, then no one would get hurt and they'd be able to safely catch the Beedrill for further study.

Misty was already fairly familiar with this plan from when they had fought off the other beedrill, but she wasn't any less nervous about it. Of course, that could have easily been because anything having to do with bugs made her nervous. Brock on the other hand was pretty confident about the plan and was quite impressed with Ash for coming up with a clever plan for the second time that day.

The minutes they were forced to wait before Onix and Beedrill revealed themselves seemed to go on for days, but, eventually, a rumbling could be heard from the ground and Onix and Beedrill flew out of one of the holes still caught in the midst of combat. Ash didn't hesitate, "Now, Pikachu! Use Thunderwave!"

Pikachu jumped from his hiding place among the fallen branches and electricity sparked off of him hitting the duo of big Pokemon directly. Onix easily shook off the attack, but Beedrill seemed to freeze in place. Brock spoke up, "Let go, Onix! Beedrill is paralyzed." Delighted at the idea of finally getting away from the monstrous wasp, Onix released it from its bind and dove away.

Now, it was Misty's turn, but she stood frozen with fear. She felt like she'd been the one hit with the thunderwave and she'd completely forgotten the plan. Then, she felt a hand against hers and fingers interlock with her own. She looked over at the owner. Ash was standing next to her giving her a reassuring smile, "You can do this, Mist."

Misty stood still for another moment before nodding, "Staryu and Starmie, use Water Gun on Beedrill!" Both starfish Pokemon immediately launched powerful streams of water at the bug type and it fell to the ground, its wings now soaked and unable to keep it elevated.

Ash grinned from ear to ear. The plan was going even better than expected, but that, unfortunately, wouldn't last for long. It was then that everyone noticed that Onix looked sickly. Everyone's first thought was that Onix had been infected by Beedrill's attacks, but it was writhing in pain not glowing green or becoming angry. The reason it looked sick was because it had been poisoned. "Onix!" Brock yelled as he began to rise from his spot to try and care for the afflicted Pokemon.

"Brock, wait!" Misty yelled, "We have to stick with the plan. Onix will be fine, but he won't be if we don't catch this thing." She was right, but Brock didn't want to admit it. Even Ash would have given up his plan in a heartbeat if his Pokemon were in trouble, but Misty was a lot more level headed now that Ash had restored her confidence. Brock finally sat back down after a few moments and picked up the PV canister that he had brought out in preparation to catch the Pokemon.

Ash nodded determinedly and looked at Pikachu, "Alright, Pikachu. Finish it off with a Thundershock attack!"

"Piii," Pikachu scurried up one of the branches as he headed towards the hulking bug type Pokemon, "Kaaa," the electric type leaped off the branch and flew at Beedrill, "CHUUU!" The bolt of electricity that Pikachu summoned slammed into the soaking wet, poison type pokemon with so much force that he sent it flying into the trunk of a nearby tree where it imbedded itself into the wood. Pikachu took that as enough of a sign that his job was done and promptly collapsed from exhaustion.

"Pikachu!" Misty held Ash back for the same reason she had stopped Brock moments ago, but Ash wasn't as reasonable as Brock had been. He rushed over to the place where Pikachu had fallen and picked him up in his arms. He looked so weak and battered. Ash wasn't even sure if the Pokemon was breathing. "Ash, move! We only get one shot!" Brock yelled. Ash came back to reality and ran back to where he and Misty had been before he ran off.

Misty would have clobbered him over the head any other day for not listening to her, but, when she saw the state Pikachu was in and the look on Ash's face, her anger was replaced by worry instead.

Brock didn't hesitate once Ash was out of the way. After pushing a few buttons on the side on the canister, a large white beam exploded out of the end and hit Beedrill directly. Beedrill then turned white and it and the beam shot back into the canister which closed automatically following the capture. Steam shot out of the vents on the other end and after a few more clicking and shifting sounds it dinged signifying that the Pokemon was successfully contained.

Brock sighed in relief, "Got it." He then realized that Onix was still seriously injured and rushed over to it to check for any further damage other than the poison. There were a few cracks in it and a small chunk or two missing, but, otherwise, it seemed okay. Brock returned it to its pokeball and smiled, "You did a great job, Onix. Don't worry. We'll get you all fixed up in no time." He then proceeded to pick up the abandoned canister and rush over to his two companions.

Misty looked up from Ash as Brock approached, "We need to get Pikachu and Onix to the Pokemon Center now." Brock nodded and they headed back to Pewter.

Brock knew the forest much better than Misty and Ash so they reached the exit in what seemed like no time at all. After transgressing the short distance between the edge of the forest and the town, they passed the guards and ran right to the Pokemon Center. They burst through the front doors and shocked all the people that were inside. There were a few people scattered about, but most of them were probably there for shelter as very few people still used the Pokemon they had, let alone got their Pokemon injured.

They ran to the front desk and gave a very confused Nurse Joy their Pokemon, "They're hurt," Ash said, "Please help."

"How did they even get hurt?" Nurse Joy asked worried as she took the pokeballs and Pikachu and handed them to a small group of Chansey that were on hand.

Brock spoke up, "They got hurt in a Pokemon battle." Ash was confused as to why Brock had used that explanation, but he decided not to say what had actually happened.

"A Battle?" Nurse Joy said confused, "Why would you battle? Don't you realize what kind of times we live in?"

Brock smiled as he continued, "Well, I suppose you can take the Gym Leader out of the battles, but you can't take the battle of the Gym Leader."

_A/N: Well, there you go. Brock used to be Gym Leader. But you knew that. Either way, what did you think of the battles and stuff. Did I do okay? Leave a review and let me know. As for the thing I was wondering about. I'm sure you've noticed that I'm not updating as often as I used to. Well, that's because recently I got a job and I've been busy. Also, school is starting soon for me, so I'll have even less time to write. So, my question is. Do you guys want me to maintain some kind of schedule? Like every week. Or should I just write when I have the time? If I post a chapter every week, I like to think they'll be longer, but you'll have to wait to read each one. If I post as often as possible, it'll be more sporadic and the chapters will remain short, but you'll get them more often and you won't have to wait as long. I'm leaving the decision up to you guys because, honestly, I'm fine with either option. So, just another reason to review. Yay! But, seriously, let me know what you guys think. I love to hear from you. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	13. Chapter 13

_A/N: Hey, Guys. I have the day off, so I'm taking this opportunity to write. Quick Shoutout to GhostNappa1214 for reviewing. Always nice to hear from someone new. Hope to hear from you and plenty of others in the future. In the meantime, Happy Reading!_

_Luke, I am your father... And I don't own Pokemon. And I'm not really your father. Yeah..._

"You're a Gym Leader!?" Ash exclaimed. He had no idea that his short time companion had once been the leader in a Pokemon Gym and he was at a loss for words. Well, not really, "Were you the Gym Leader here? Do you only use rock-type Pokemon? Which badge did you give out? Why didn't you tell us?"

"Woah, woah, woah!" Brock interrupted, "Slow down. I _used_ to be the Gym Leader here in Pewter, but it was only for a short period of time. I was the Gym Leader for a few months or so when the PV Infection reached a critical state and the entire league was disbanded." He shrugged, "To be honest I never even really felt like the Gym Leader type. That's why I went into Pokemon Research after the gym was closed. "

Ash was reluctant to drop the topic, but Brock didn't look as though he had much else to say. He changed the direction of conversation by turning to Nurse Joy, "So, are our Pokemon gonna be okay?"

Nurse Joy was still very confused, but she regained her composure and put on a serious face, "I'm not sure. They seemed to be in very poor condition when you brought them in. For that matter I can't believe that you'd be so irresponsible as to let them exhaust themselves to this point."

Ash held his head in shame and Misty stepped forward, "Hey. It wasn't like that."

Joy didn't seem convinced, "Oh? And what was it like?"

"We weren't battling. I mean, not for fun anyway," Misty tried to explain.

"Then, why would you battle?" Nurse Joy pressed.

"It's a long story." Misty answered.

"Well, we've got plenty of time while your Pokemon recover," Nurse Joy said with finality.

Ash spoke up, "So, they're going to be okay..?" He trailed off.

Nurse Joy looked at him sternly, but her expression softened at the sight of him. There were tears building up in his eyes and his expression was one of pure guilt. She sighed, "The damages are rather bad," she paused, "but as long as they get a lot of rest, they should be fine." Ash's expression didn't change, so she gave him a light reassuring smile. "Don't worry. Everything will be okay."

Ash shook his head, "I'm sorry, everyone," Ash mumbled.

"What are you sorry about, Ash?" Misty asked worriedly. She'd never seen Ash seem so hopeless.

"Brock told me to think more about the consequences of my actions, but it's my fault that our Pokemon are hurt," Ash continued. His eyes were shadowed by the brim of his hat, so Misty couldn't tell what he was thinking like she normally might.

"It wasn't your-" Misty began, but Ash cut her off.

"It _was_ my fault, Misty." Ash lifted his head and Misty was surprised at what she saw. There wasn't a look of pain or hopelessness in Ash's eyes. Instead there was the fiery determination that Misty had grown accustom to, "But, trust me, no one's gonna get hurt again if I can help it." He smiled determinedly.

Brock and Misty smiled, too. Even Nurse Joy seemed to be satisfied with Ash's revelation as she nodded and walked off to care for the Pokemon. Then, something strange happened. As Nurse Joy left, Brock's personality seemed to take a turn, "Wait, Nurse Joy." She stopped and turned to look at him with a bit of concern in her eyes, "I almost forgot." Brock's face flushed a light red color, "I couldn't let you leave without me declaring my undying love for you!" Brock exclaimed leaving everyone in the room in a state of shock and utter confusion.

"My darling Joy, how patient I was, how hard I tried to contain my love for you, but I can do it no longer. You're beauty is nothing compared to your caring nature. Please, if you may, care for me like I am an injured Pokemon. Nurse my love sick heart back to health, Nurse Joy-" Brock's lovelorn rant was suddenly cut short by a sudden whack to the head. Misty's fist had landed a direct blow knocking him to the ground.

"You may think you're love sick, but you're undying love is making _me_ sick." Brock simply twitched in pain. Misty shrugged, "And for a little while there, I really thought I met another hopeless romantic."

Ash just stood baffled. He had no idea what had exactly taken place before him. Just a little while ago, Misty was intently listening to Brock babble on about love and girls, but now she seemed to get angry at the thought, or at least more violent. Nurse Joy on the other hand wasn't entirely sure what to do, so she just left the trio to sort things out themselves.

Within a few moments, Brock seemed to regain his senses. He cleared his throat awkwardly, "So, uh, anyone hungry?"

After a short meal prepared by Brock, Nurse Joy returned. Misty quickly shot a glare at Brock signifying that he should behave himself and Brock lowered his head disappointed. Nurse Joy flashed a smile, "Everyone's going to be perfectly fine. They sure took a bit of a bruising, but nothing too bad. The onix was the worst off. I'm not even sure how he got so badly poisoned, but we provided plenty of antidote for him and he's making a steady recovery."

Ash spoke up first, "What about Pikachu? Is he gonna be okay?"

Nurse Joy just gave him another reassuring smile, "Pikachu was just tired. He's resting now and when he wakes up, he'll be stronger than ever."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." Ash said smiling back and she walked away. He then turned towards his two friends, "So, when the Pokemon are fully healed, what should we do next?"

Misty thought for a second, "We'll have to go and find other mutant Pokemon, I suppose. Right?" She looked towards Brock for confirmation.

He nodded, "Mhm. And if that Beedrill is any indication of what we'll be facing out there, then we have a lot of training to do as well." Misty and Ash nodded and that's where the conversation ended.

They sat and made small talk for a while until Nurse Joy returned with their pokeballs and Pikachu. "Pikapi!" Pikachu yelled as he leaped from the counter that Nurse Joy had placed him on and into Ash's arms.

"Pikachu!" Ash laughed, "I'm so happy that you're okay!"

"Ash?" Misty started, "Why isn't Pikachu in a pokeball?

Ash shrugged, "Well, Pikachu has a pokeball. I caught him when he was still a pichu, but he doesn't like it in there. He says he feels cramped." Pikachu nodded.

Brock spoke up, "Doesn't that seem odd? I mean, Pokemon can be transported easier in Pokeballs. Besides, Pikachu can rest on your shoulder for now because he's small, but what about when he evolves into a raichu? What will you do then?"

Ash subconsciously touched the place on his chest where the thunderstone rested. Then, he shook his head stubbornly, "I don't want to evolve Pikachu. I think he's great as he is and he could beat a raichu any day." He angrily balled up his fists as if he was prepared to fight Brock to prove that size didn't matter.

Brock held up his hands in mock defense, "Okay, okay. Fine. Whatever you say, tough guy." He laughed.

Ash wasn't amused, "Ha. Ha. Very funny."

Misty giggled, "Aw, come on, Ash. Have a sense of humor."

"Hey, I have a sense of humor," He crossed his arms, "I just don't think it was very funny, that's all."

Misty scowled, "Oh, stop being such a baby."

Ash scowled right back, "I'm not a baby. I just think that we should be more serious. We have an important job to do, ya know?"

Misty turned away and crossed her arms, "Well, that doesn't mean you have to act like a jerk."

Brock stepped in, "Oh, come on, guys. Let's not fight. I'm sorry about the joke, Ash, and, Misty, Ash is just a little on edge that's all. We're all friends here. Let's act like it."

Suddenly, Ash's shoulder's relaxed, "You really mean that?" Brock looked puzzled, so Ash continued, "We're all... Friends? Really?"

Misty turned around to face him, "Of course, you dummy." She smiled, "Why is that so hard to believe?"

Ash looked at his shoes and rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "It's just that... I've never really had any friends besides Pikachu. It was just me and my mom for most of my life. I mean, I know I said that we were friends before, Mist, but it never really felt like it until just now." He looked up and his eyes were gleaming, "We are friends. All three of us." He laughed and the other two smiled kindly at him.

"So, are we ready to go?" Brock said finally.

Ash and Misty nodded, "Yup. Where to?" Misty said. The air became more tense as the seriousness of their situation began to surface again.

Brock thought for a moment, "Well, in theory, in a place where there is a high concentration of wild Pokemon, there will be a high concentration of infected. Therefore, it's more likely that there are mutant Pokemon in environments where many wild Pokemon can be found. For instance, there was a mutant in the forest because there are a lot of Pokemon that live there."

Misty nodded, "I see. So, where do you think we can find a large group of wild Pokemon close to here?"

"I would have thought that would be obvious. The next closest place from here that a lot of Pokemon live is Mount Moon. It's just a few miles east of here," Brock explained.

Ash tilted his head in confusion, "Mt. Moon? What's that?"

Misty answered, "Well, Ash, Mt. Moon is this tall mountain with a lot of different kinds of Pokemon. They call it Mt. Moon because people used to think that a long time ago a meteor from the moon hit it scattering moonstones everywhere. People also think that alien Pokemon came from the meteorite and still live there to this day."

Ash's eyes widened, "Wow. Aliens. What do you think of that, Pikachu?" Pikachu looked just as excited as his trainer, "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

After some persuasion, Nurse Joy allowed the group to leave the safety of the Pokemon Center, but they didn't get very far before they were stopped again, "Brock! Where are you going, big brother?"

All three spun around to see a boy younger than Ash running down the street. He looked just like Brock: Same spikey brown hair, tan skin, and squinting eyes. Brock's seemed to suddenly realize something as the boy approached, "Forrest! Oh, man. I can't believe I forgot." He turned to Ash and Misty, "Guys, this is my little brother, Forrest. And I-" He sighed, "I have to stay here and take care of him and my other brothers and sisters."

Ash was shocked, "What? Why do you have to take care of them? What about your parents? Your mom and dad?"

Forrest's head hung low at the word "parents" and Brock looked solemnly at the pair, "My mom died a few years ago and my dad hasn't really done much besides sit around the house since then. _I've_ had to be the one to take care of my brothers and sisters."

Forrest sniffled, "I miss mom..."

Brock hugged his little brother to him, "I do, too." Misty began to tear up a little at the sight, so Ash mimicked Brock's actions and hugged Misty. After a few moments, the two pairs broke apart and Ash tried to awkwardly move the conversation forward.

"So, does this mean, we have to go on alone?" Ash said.

Brock nodded sadly, "I'm afraid so."

"Well, I'm afraid _not_." All heads turned toward the source of the sound of the voice. There, standing behind Brock and Forrest, was a man that looked much like both of them, except much older. His spikey hair was graying and he had a few wrinkles around his eyes. He also had an unkempt beard that gave him the appearance of a homeless man.

"Dad?" Brock said obviously confused.

The man nodded, "Brock, I heard what you said and you're right. I've been a terrible father to you and your siblings, but if you'll let me, I'll try and pick up the pieces."

Brock didn't hesitate, "No." Everyone looked confused as he went on, "Dad, you've had years to recognize what you're doing is wrong and you haven't taken that chance. I just can't believe that today of all days, you'd suddenly see the light and change your ways."

Brock's father seemed shocked, "But, Brock-"

"No!" Brock yelled, "I was twelve years old when Mom died. Twelve! And what did you do? You enveloped yourself in your own little pool of self-pity and left us, your _children_, to fend for ourselves. I had to take care of nine brothers and sisters at the age of twelve because my _father_ was too depressed to do anything. If you really want me to believe that you've changed, then you're going to have to prove it!"

Everyone was shocked. It was really quiet for a long time. Misty began to cry again and all Ash could do to help was hug her and that didn't seem to help at all. Forrest was crying, too, but he was doing it quietly so neither of his family members seemed to notice.

Finally, Brock's dad fell to his hands and knees with his head hanging down, "You're- You're right..." He was shaking and his voice was weak and broken. Ash couldn't tell, but it almost sounded like _he _ was crying, too. "I'm even worse than I imagined... I abandoned my only children..." He looked up suddenly, "What can I do to prove that I can support this family? How can I make you believe in me?"

Brock shook his head, "I don't know, Dad. That's something that _you_ have to figure out." Brock wanted to believe his father, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. There was just too much pain to overlook.

He rose back to his feet, "I know what I must do." Brock's expression didn't falter, but Ash thought he saw a glimmer of hope in his "eye". "I'll prove to you that I'm capable of caring for this family. The question is, what will _you _choose to do when I've done so."

Brock looked puzzled, "What do you mean? I'm going with my friends."

The older man shook his head, "Everyone must choose a path. My path will lead me to being a better caretaker and father. I will become responsible enough to assume my rightful position as supporter of my own household. What path will you choose? Will you choose to fight the battles that no one else will? Or will you choose settle and accept the situation that we live in? Ask yourself these and, when it really matters, you'll know the answers."

The questions hung in the air and it felt almost like they weren't even directed at Brock anymore. They were directed at all three of them. What choices would they ultimately make when all is said and done? Who would they become? One day they would all have to choose The Path to Follow.

_A/N: He said the thing! Woah! So, this was a pretty heavy chapter. I packed a lot of information in it and even managed to squeeze in a thematic point. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this chapter myself, so why don't you guys tell me what you think? Too dark? Too Light? Did I rush the whole main theme thing? Review and let me know! I work the next couple of days, so don't expect another update for a little while. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	14. Chapter 14

_A/N: Hey, guys. I'm gonna make this short. Quick Shoutout to HunterKiller1014. Thanks for the review. I appreciate it and I hope you enjoy the rest of the story. Happy Reading!_

_Pokemon are our friends. We do not own them... So, there. I don't own Pokemon._

The five of them, plus their Pokemon, stood there in silence for a while. Some of them, like Ash and Misty, were pondering the questions that Brock's father had presented. Others, like Brock and his father, were wondering what Brock's ultimate decision would be. Then, there was Forrest who simply wished that the area wasn't so tense and that his eldest brother and father would make up.

Finally, someone spoke up, but it wasn't anyone in the group, "Everyone get inside! We're in a state of emergency! Infected are swarming!" It was one of the guards from the edge of town. He was rushing toward them with an assault rifle in hand. The fact that the other guard was nowhere to be seen didn't do much to lighten the situation.

Before anyone had a chance to react, Brock's father ran off. Not towards the guard or the Pokemon Center, but away from all of them entirely. Misty and Ash were shocked by the man's blatant disregard for his children's safety, but the children themselves didn't appear surprised in the slightest. If anything, Brock simply appeared a little disappointed.

The guard reached them, "Didn't you hear me? Get inside now!" He turned to Brock and his voice lowered to little more than whisper, "Please..." The desperation in his voice was evident and heartbreaking.

Brock's face was emotionless as he spoke, "Where's Liam?"

The guard's mouth hung open as he struggled to voice a response. When he finally managed to regain his composure, his voice was low, "Dead."

Misty and Ash gasped, Forrest sniffled quietly, and Brock simply nodded, "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah." The guard cleared his throat, "I'm sorry, Brock. We really don't have time for this. You need to get somewhere safe."

Brock shook his head, "No. I need to make sure my family's safe. I'm sorry, Pete." At this Brock swiftly turned on his heel to face Forrest who nodded immediately understanding. They both wordlessly broke off running leaving the guard, Pete, very angry.

"Shit," Pete muttered to himself frustrated. Suddenly remembering that there were still two young children present, he turned towards them, "You two aren't going anywhere." He released a Pokemon from a pokeball at his waste. It was a Large, orange, dog Pokemon. "Arcanine, keep an eye on these two while I go get reinforcements. Bring them to the Pokemon Center over there and make sure no one gets out. Got it?"

"Nine!" The large dog barked it's understanding. Then, Pete nodded satisfied with the response and rushed off. The arcanine then turned to Ash and Misty and growled at them, signifying that they move. Ash looked as though he was about to protest and Pikachu's cheeks began to spark threateningly, but Misty gave them a look that said, _Don't_.

They were reluctantly shepherded to the Pokemon Center where they were shoved inside by the big Pokemon. It looked just as it did when they had left moments ago, but now everyone seemed a lot more on edge as they waited in anticipation for what was to come. As soon as they were inside, Ash turned on Misty, "We can't just sit here!"

Misty was quick to retort, "We can and we will. There's a difference between working to find a cure and throwing ourselves into danger for no reason."

"What about all the people out there? What about Brock and Forrest? They need our help,"Ash pushed.

Misty wouldn't back down, "There are guards and other more experienced trainers out there. For that matter, Brock can take care of himself."

She had a point. Ash stubbornly crossed his arms and growled, "Fine."

Misty smiled to herself. He'd actually conceded which meant that both of them were safe for the time being. "Good. Now, let's just try and relax."

* * *

Brock felt kind of bad for leaving Ash and Misty there with Pete. He knew that Pete wouldn't be very happy about it and that Ash and Misty would probably not be joining them. Even so, he didn't regret his decision. He had to make sure that his brothers and sisters were safe. Speaking of which, "You alright, Forrest?"

His little brother nodded, "I'm fine, Brock. Don't worry about me."

Brock let himself smile a little, "You're my little brother. I'm always gonna worry about you."

Forrest blushed a little, "Thanks, Br- AH!" He was cut off by his own screech of pain. He collapsed to the ground, leaving Brock stunned.

"Forrest!?" He immediately bent down next his younger brother to see what had happened. He immediately noticed a familiar purple barb just above his right shoulder blade. There were two more, one on his right hip and another on his right arm, that Brock could see and that was enough for Brock to know that he was going to be poisoned. "Dammit," Brock muttered under his breath. Reacting quickly Brock released his Onix and Geodude from their pokeballs and managed a quiet "Cover me" before returning his attention back to his brother.

Forrest managed a weak whisper, "Brock, I don't feel too good."

"What? No. You're fine, buddy. Let me carry you home and you can lie down for a little while," Brock tried to reassure his brother. With a nod from Forrest, Brock gingerly picked him up and broke out into a jog.

He could hear a buzzing and for a moment he worried that the Beedrill had somehow escaped it's canister, but then he noticed all the other beedrill flying around. Poison stings were flying all over the place and guard and citizens alike were desperately trying to fend off the oversized wasps. Brock tried not to think about everything going on around him as he made his way to his home.

He could hear gun shots and cries of pain, but he remained focused. Finally, his home came into sight: A small, one-story house on the edge of town where he, his father and all his siblings lived. Relieved Brock slowed to a walk, "We're almost there, Forrest. Everything's going to fine. I promise."

"O.. Kay..." Forrest coughed out. Worry again made it's way into Brock's face as he looked down at the boy in his arms. _He's going to make it, _He assured himself, _He has to._

Brock burst through the front door and without a word to any of his other siblings he ran to the small couch they had in the front room and placed Forrest on it. He then ran to the medicine cabinet in the kitchen and grabbed a small bottle of antidote they kept. He grabbed a cotton swab and a pair of tweezers and ran back to Forrest. The areas around the poison barbs were already turning purple so Brock immediately went to work.

* * *

"What if they _do_ need our help?" Ash asked worried.

"Well, then they'll come and find us." Misty responded cordially. They'd been sitting for about a half hour at this point and Ash was growing fidgety and, as much as Misty didn't want to admit it, she was a little restless herself.

"But if they need our help, then where are they going to find the time time to find us?" Ash implored.

"They'll send a messenger pidgey," Misty responded impatiently.

"But what the pidgey get's hurt before it gets here and we never get the message?" Ash continued.

"Well, then there's nothing we can do." Misty was growing irritated.

"But what if there is?"

"What?! What would you have us do, Ash Ketchum? Go out there and nearly get ourselves killed on the off-chance that there's someone out there who not only needs help, but will settle for the help of bratty kid like you?" Misty exploded.

Misty expected Ash to yell back, but, surprisingly, he didn't. Instead, he calmly and quietly said, "No. I think we should find Brock's dad."

After removing the barbs with the tweezers, Brock began to treat each wound with the antidote. At first, nothing happened, but after a while, the swelling began to go down. Relief began to wash over Brock as the purple stains in his brother's skin began to fade. He released Happiny from her pokeball, "Alright, Happiny. I need you to use Refresh on Forrest's injuries to completely rid them of poison, okay?

Happiny looked delighted to help, "Hap Hap!"

"Is Forrest gonna be okay?" one of Brock's other siblings spoke up. Until that point, Brock had been to focused, and too afraid, to answer these kinds of questions from the younger children, but with the swelling going down, Brock felt more comfortable responding.

"Forrest is going to be just fine." He smiled reassuringly at his siblings before turning towards the front door. Onix and Geodude had been doing a very good job at fending off the infected Pokemon for the most part, as most of them were bugs and, as rock-types, they had a definite advantage, but they were growing more and more tired with each second and the attacking Pokemon weren't lighting up. Brock managed to feign a confident statement, "_Everything_ is going to be fine."

* * *

Misty had been very reluctant to agree to Ash's plan at first, but, given the option of helping Brock and sitting around doing nothing, Misty eventually conceded. Ash and Pikachu crept their way over to the front door of the center. No one paid them any special attention. Nurse Joy was caring for the injured Pokemon that had been brought in and everyone else seemed too wrapped up in their own worries to pay any special attention to some kid and his Pokemon.

They peered outside to see if the arcanine was still there. It was no longer right outside the front door, but it was still close by. It was fighting off at least five beedrills at once with it's mighty flamethrower attack. Ash looked back at Misty and signaled for her to join them. When she was standing next to him he leaned over and whispered, "Arcanine's distracted. If we're gonna try and get out, we gotta go now."

Misty nodded and they carefully opened the door to avoid making a sound. It slid open silently, but upon closing again a dull thud could be heard. The dog Pokemon's ear twitched and after burning up the last beedrill it turned to look at the trio. It began to growl at them, so Ash grabbed Misty's hand and shouted, "Run!"

Misty didn't need to be told twice. The two of them broke out into a sprint away from the dog Pokemon with Pikachu right at their heels. Misty glanced back to see that it had stopped at the corner of the Pokemon Center. It continued to growl for a couple of seconds before turning around and disappearing from view. "It's gone." She managed to say in between breaths.

They slowed to a stop and gasped for air for a few moments. Their break was short lived, however, as soon a buzzing could be heard and a swarm of beedrill began to fly at them. The pair silently agreed that there was no way the could fight them off and began to run again. Pikachu sent a thunderwave to slow down the incoming Pokemon and followed. They turned down random streets and didn't pay much attention at all to the direction they were going, but, eventually, they happened upon the old Pokemon gym.

"There! Let's take shelter inside for a little while and catch our breath," Misty gasped. Ash managed a nod and the three of them ran right in slamming the door shut behind them. Ash and Misty leaned up against the door and slid to a sitting position as they gulped in as much air as possible. Neither of them were used to running so much.

When they'd finally caught their breath, Misty spoke up, "So, what now, Mr. Let's-find-Brock's-dad? We just ran all around the city and, I don't know about you, but I didn't see him anywhere. In fact, I'm starting to think, he just up and left."

"I didn't," A voice echoed around the room. All three sets of eyes looked in the direction the voice had come from. Standing in the same place Brock had been just the day before was his father. "What are you two doing here? Where's Brock?"

Misty could hardly contain her temper, "Why would you care? You just ran off. And after you told Brock that you were going to be responsible, too."

Ash placed his hand on Misty's arm to silence her, "He's left. He's protecting his family, _your_ family," Ash said, "And we want to help him. So, we came to find you."

"Why would you want to find me? If you thought that I'd abandoned my family, what makes you think I would help now?"

"Because you didn't abandon them. You're still here. The question is, why are you _here?_" Ash asked indicating their surroundings.

"I _am_ being responsible." He glanced at Misty as he said this, "I would have been no use to Brock or anyone defenseless. That's why I came here. I had to get this." He held up a plain pokeball, "With this I can finally do what I'm supposed to. I can protect my family. If you really want to help, then let's go."

* * *

Brock was getting nervous. Geodude had grown too weak to fight anymore, so now it was only Onix. What Brock couldn't make heads or tails of was why there were so many Pokemon attacking in the first place. Viridian Forest just seemed to explode with Pokemon. If it wasn't for the type advantage that Onix had over most of the Pokemon that come from the forest, it probably would have been defeated already. Even so, it was about ready to collapse anyway.

Brock thought about using Happiny, but he didn't want to take the chance of the playhouse Pokemon getting hurt. His rock-types were resistant to just about everything being thrown at them, but Happiny was a normal-type and would take normal damage. Brock cursed himself for not catching more Pokemon while he was younger. If, no _when_, he made it out of this, he would make sure to catch more, even if it meant catching a bunch of geodudes.

"Onix!" The rock snake cried in pain. A beedrill had landed a critical hit with it's fury attack and Onix fell to the ground with a giant crash. Brock quickly returned him to his pokeball before worse could happen and slammed the door closed. As the buzzing outside intensified, Brock found himself praying for a miracle.

"Golem, Rock Blast!" Brock was surprised to hear the voice from outside. He rushed to the window to see who it was and he was absolutely shocked at what he saw. A large, turtle-like creature with a spherical shell of rock covering it's body was standing outside firing large rocks at the beedrill one after another with deadly precision.

However, that's not what shocked Brock. It was the man commanding the Golem: His father. Ash and Misty stood next to him and were using their soak and shock technique to take out stray enemies that his father had missed. This strategy was working very well to take out the swarm.

Brock left his place at the window leaving it open for his siblings. All of them seemed mystified to find their father defending their home. Brock swung the door open and stared in awe as the last infected fell. He ran to friends and father, "That was amazing." He looked directly at his father, "Thank you, but I didn't even know you still had Golem."

The older man nodded, "He never left. He's just been resting a while." He paused as if deciding what to say, "When you're mother died, I lost the will to battle. I lost the will to do a lot of things." Brock nodded, "I'm sorry that I've been so terrible these past few years, but I hope that my actions today show you that I'm ready to step up and be the man that this family deserves."

Brock lowered his head, "Dad..." His voice was quiet, "You did _nothing_ for three years. We nearly died without you." His father lowered his own head in shame, "But, if it weren't for you today, we would definitely be dead." He raised his head again to meet the admiring gaze of his son, "I can't say that I completely forgive you for everything. We're a long way from that. But I know that at least I can trust you to keep this family safe while I'm gone. You were right. We all have our own paths. And mine's just not here." Brock turned and looked out to the setting sun, "It's out there somewhere... with Ash and Misty." He turned back to his father, "Thank you, Dad, for letting me follow my own path."

After Brock and his father, whose name was Flint as they learned, buried the hatchet, they spent a little time in town checking the damages and helping to rid the city of the last of the infected. The city would be evacuated soon. It was just too dangerous to live so close to the forest. All the residents would be transported to the nearest safe haven. Brock said his goodbyes to his family and the trio sneaked out of town amidst the crowds trying to find a place on the military transport vehicles.

Just like that, they were on the road to Mt. Moon. None of them really knew what was in store for them there, but they knew one thing: It was going to be dangerous.

_A/N: That was fun! Death and Love and Action and Giant Rock Turtle things! Everything a good chapter needs. Anyway, please review! I love hearing from you guys. It motivates me to keep on rolling. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	15. Chapter 15

_A/N: Hey, guys. Sorry that it's been a while. That's partly because of work and school and such, but also because I've been waiting for a review. Usually, I like to wait until someone reviews the chapter that I've posted so I know whether it was well received or not. No one's done so yet, but I feel like it's been a while since I posted, so here we go. I hope you guys like this chapter and, as always, Happy Reading!_

_From now on, Instead of just simply saying I don't own Pokemon, I'm going to name all the things I would do with Pokemon if I did. If I owned Pokemon, I would let Ash age. Being ten years old forever may seem like a good appeal, but it's annoying and I don't like it one bit._

"If you could be any Pokemon in the entire world, which one would you be, Misty?" Ash mused. They had gotten about halfway to the base of Mt. Moon when they decided to set up camp for the night. Brock had warned against setting up a campfire because it might attract too much attention, but they ultimately decided that if they were attacked, they would prefer to be able to see. Ash and Misty were sitting cross legged on the ground talking in low voices while Brock was on watch.

"Hmm," Misty closed her eyes in thought, "I think I'd be..." She trailed off thinking before her eyes snapped open, "A magikarp!"

"Magikarp!?" Ash bellowed as he broke into a fit of laughter. He was young and inexperienced, but if he knew one thing about Pokemon, it was that magikarp was the absolute weakest Pokemon ever.

Misty's cheeks flushed red with anger, "Yes. People underestimate the power of a magikarp, but, like me, they have a lot of power hidden away."

Ash didn't stop laughing, "Power? What kind of power? The power to deal no damage? The power to look stupid?" Ash's laughter was quickly cut short by sharp pain on his temple. Misty had whacked him across the head and the force of the hit had knocked him to the ground, "Ow!"

"Hmph," Misty muttered, "That's what you get for making fun of me."

Ash sat back up as he rubbed his head, "I wasn't making fun of you..." He muttered, "I was making fun of your stupid Pokemon."

Steam seemed to shoot out Misty's ears, "What did you say?"

"Nothing!" Ash responded quickly.

Misty narrowed her eyes at Ash, but then simply shrugged, "So, what Pokemon would you be?"

Ash's slightly fearful expression suddenly changed to one of of pure excitement as his grin grew wide, "That's easy! I'd be a Pikachu! I may be small, but I can sure _shock_ anyone that tries to mess with me!" Ash laughed at his own joke, but Misty just rolled her eyes. Pikachu seemed to agree with her as he buried his head in his paws and shook his head.

"Very funny, but it's time for bed, you two." They looked up to find Brock standing over them, "We have to be up early tomorrow if we're gonna climb the mountain and you both need plenty of rest."

They both sighed, "Sorry, Brock." They said in unison.

Brock smiled. They really reminded him of his own brothers and sisters. He may have only just left his family, but he was already starting to miss them. "Just go to sleep, guys. I'll see you in the morning."

At that, they made up their beds. Ash simply laid his jacket on the grass and lay on top of it. Regardless, his snores could be heard within seconds. Misty gathered up leaves and made a pile in the shape of a bed. She then lay herself on the makeshift bed and went to sleep as well. Brock stared over them for a few moments to make sure they were both really asleep then proceeded back to his watching place.

Geodude, Onix and Happiny were waiting there for him, although it appeared as though Happiny had fallen asleep as well. The small pink Pokemon was curled up against Onix and was dozing peacefully.

Brock smiled at the baby Pokemon, but his smile faded slowly as he remembered.

* * *

_Three years ago_

"Hi, mom!" A slightly younger Brock burst into the small hospital room excitedly, "Did you hear? Did you hear?"

His sick mother smiled down at him sweetly, "Hear what, dear?"

"The doctors said that you can go home soon!" Brock was practically bouncing up and down with excitement.

"That's lovely, Brocky!" The boy's mother said affectionately. She motioned for him to come closer and, when he did, she whispered, "Guess what?"

"What?" Brock responded curiously.

"I was talking to the nice nurse's here about how you're birthday was coming up and do you know what they did?" She said gently as she stroked Brock's cheek softly.

"What'd they do, mom?" Brock was growing eager again.

She smiled at her son's enthusiasm, "They gave me this," She pulled out a pink and white Pokeegg. "And told me to give it to you." Brock's eyes were wide as he stared at the egg, but before he could grab it his mother pulled it out of his reach, "On one condition."

Brock looked up curiously again, "What's that?"

"You must always be kind and friendly towards women. I told them how sweet you are and they want to be sure that you stay that way. Do you think you can do that, Brocky?"

Brock smiled widely, "I promise, mom. That I'll be the kindest, friendliest person to women ever! They'll have to drag me by ear to get me away from them." They both laughed and Brock's mother gladly handed the Pokeegg over to her son.

"Happy Birthday, Brocky!" She smiled, "Now, go tell your father to stop worrying so much. I feel fine." Brock turned around excitedly and began to walk away, but before he could leave the room she began to cough. A few small coughs at first, but it quickly grew in intensity as she began gasping for air. Brock rushed back, "Mom?"

"Move out of the way!" A large man ran into the room and pushed Brock to the side. He landed on his butt as more people entered the small room and started hurriedly looking at papers and pressing buttons and yelling things that Brock didn't understand.

"Mom!" Brock yelled in the confusion, but no one paid him any attention, "MOM!"

* * *

A loud crash woke Brock up. He'd fallen asleep sitting out here. He looked around confused to find Onix sprawled on the ground in front of him. It lifted its head to face it's enemies. Standing before them was a very angry looking nidoqueen. It must have been recently evolved because it didn't look very big yet, but that didn't matter. It had a definite green tint to it's skin and it's eyes were blood shot. It was infected, but it wasn't mutated.

Brock didn't have time to contemplate the condition of the raging PV nidoqueen because it began to run at him. When it was a few feet away it leaped into the air and it's feet began to glow. It was using it's double kick attack. "Onix! Use Harden!" Onix responded by flashing white for a few seconds as the attack came into contact with it. The nidoqueen landed two direct hits right in the forehead and Onix collapsed again.

"Onix!" Brock yelled desperately, but the rock snake was unconscious.

"Hap! Hap!" Brock's head shot up at the sound. He quickly scanned the area to find the nidoqueen hulking towering over his happiny.

"Happiny!" His call did nothing to save the playhouse Pokemon as the nidoqueen used double kick once again, effectively punting Happiny into the air as it yelped in pain. Brock ran in the direction she was falling and dove, catching her in mid-air. He crashed to the ground, but held her close protecting her from further harm.

"Geo!" Brock inched his head up to see the small floating rock-type hovering in front of him. The Nidoqueen was trudging it's way over and it's feet were already beginning to glow as it prepared it's next attack. Geodude wouldn't survive the hit any better than his other two Pokemon had. And then, they would be done for.

* * *

"Onix! Use Harden!" The sound of Brock yelling had awoken Ash and Misty from their sleep. They shot to their feet and approached slowly. What they saw made them want to crawl back in bed and hope that they would wake up from the nightmare unfolding in front of them. Brock's Onix had been knocked unconscious by a infected nidoqueen, Brock was on the ground holding Happiny who was also unconscious, and the only thing standing, or floating rather, in between the nidoqueen and them was Brock's geodude.

Then, something amazing happened. Geodude began to glow white and morph in shape. It's body became bulkier and rougher, it grew two more arms and two legs, and a small crest on it's forehead appeared. It fell to the ground with a thud and the light faded. There standing before them was an entire new Pokemon. Geodude had evolved into Graveler. "Ler! Graveler!" It bellowed with determination.

Brock stood up, but neither Ash nor Misty could see his face, "Graveler, use Magnitude. Full Power." Without hesitation, Graveler starting to glow a faint brown color before jumping high in the air. It jumped higher than Ash thought any rock could and when it came back down it landed with a powerful crash that sent ripples across the ground like water.

The ground shook tremendously sending both Ash and Misty toppling to the ground, but Brock somehow managed to keep his balance even standing so close to source of the quake. Nidoqueen, however, got the full force of the attack and was sent flying through the air. It crashed to the ground as it screeched in pain.

"Again." Brock muttered and Graveler repeated his attack, this time jumping even higher in the air. One could hear the sounds of Nidoqueen's bones breaking over it's screams of agony. "Again!" Brock yelled not satisfied as long as the creature was still alive.

"Stop!" Graveler stopped and Brock turned his head towards the source of the sound. Misty had screamed in horror at what she was seeing. It was one thing for the infected creature to act without mercy, but Brock? A human being. Who was he?

"You two should be asleep," Brock said coldly.

"How could we sleep through _that?_" Ash commented just as horrified as Misty.

"He _attacked_ us. What did you expect me to do? Let him go free?" Brock replied plainly.

"It's one thing to attack in self-defense, but you were _killing_ it, Brock," Misty said quietly.

"Do you know what kind of world we live in?!" Brock yelled, "What we have to do to survive here? Do you understand that we could all die at any given moment from something much worse than nidoqueen that knows double kick?" He stopped. Misty and Ash were staring at him with so much fear in their eyes. Fear of him. He lowered his voice to little more than whisper, "I don't like this. Any of this. Feeling pain. Or causing it," he laughed sadly to himself, "I wanted to be a Pokemon Doctor. I wanted to heal them all." He took in a deep breath to stop the tears, "But someone has to be willing to do what it takes to protect us. I'm not asking you to kill anything, but, sometimes, it has to be done." He looked at them sincerely, "I'm sorry."

The younger children simply stared at him for a while until he got the message that they wouldn't understand so easily. He simply pulled out his pokeballs and returned his two fainted Pokemon. He walked over to his new graveler and sat down next to it. Eventually, Ash and Misty returned to their respective "beds" without a word to one another. Pikachu was still asleep, curled up next Ash's jacket. Ash let a smile come to his lips at the site, _He slept through the entire thing._ His smiled faded as he took one last look at Brock before lying down and going back to sleep.

_A/N: So, this chapter was pretty short. I'm sorry. I know after so long they should be longer, but I think that was a good place to end it. We get a little bit more outlook at how certain characters had to develop and what they have to do to survive. Pretty dark, I think, but, I mean, it's a Pokemon Apocalypse. What did you expect? Anyway, please review. I could never do this without your support. Until the next installment, See ya!_

_PS if there are any spelling or gramatical errors, I'm sorry. My secretary sucks... He never shows up, he doesn't exist, he's always complaining, and he never does any work. Anyway. I didn't really check very well for errors, so just bear with me. Thanks a ton, guys. See ya!_


	16. Chapter 16

_A/N: Hiya! Sorry for the hiatus. Between school and my short attention span I hardly had enough time to write. Shoutout to a guest and HunterKiller1014. Thanks, you guys! I really appreciate it. Hope you guys like this chapter. Happy Reading!_

_If I owned Pokemon, I would give awesome Pokemon like Farfetch'd and Heracross evolutions. That one's more game oriented, but still._

"Graveler, use Magnitude!" Brock commanded. Graveler obediently created an earth shattering quake that sent the horde of infected flying. Brock winced as he heard them cry out in pain, but he couldn't afford to be merciful. There was too much depending on him, "Finish th-" He was cut off.

"Big brother?" The voice caused Brock to spin around. There standing behind him were all his brothers and sisters. "What are you doing, Brock? Why are you hurting those Pokemon?"

"I- I have to. I'm protecting you," Brock shakily explained.

"But what did they do? Why are you attacking them?" The voice didn't seem to come from any one of them in particular. It seemed to be in all of their voices.

"They're sick. They could try and hurt you-" Brock continued.

"So, if we got sick, you would hurt us?" they responded quickly.

"What? No. Of course not." Brock wasn't sure what to tell them.

"What if you're Pokemon got sick. Would you hurt them?"

"I-" Brock was at a loss for words.

"Grav." Brock spun around. Graveler was turning green.

"No..." Brock whispered.

"Brock?" Brock turned back. His siblings were also turning green.

"But that's impossible." Brock was beginning to shake.

"Graveler!" A crashing sound could be heard and the earth beneath Brock's feet shook violently. He flew through the air and landed on his arm. He heard a cracking sound, but that wasn't all. He also heard the cries and wails of his brothers and sisters.

"Brock!" They screamed.

"No... No..." Brock whispered to himself.

"Graveler!"

* * *

"Graveler! Grav!" Brock jolted awake. The dream was unsettling, but nothing he wasn't used to. Looming over him was Graveler and he looked worried.

Brock rubbed his eyes, "I'm okay, Graveler. Where are the others?"

"Grav ler ler graveler," Graveler explained. Brock looked around to find them stretching by their makeshift beds. They must have had stiff backs after sleeping on the ground. _Come to think of it,_ Brock thought, _my back is killing me._ Brock stood and rubbed his back uncomfortably.

"Hey, guys," Brock called out. Neither of them looked at him. Brock sighed, _I guess they need more time._ Brock lifted a pokeball out of his pocket, "Return, Graveler. You deserve some rest." The red beam shot out of the pokeball and enveloped the rock-type before pulling it back into the small, red and white sphere. "We better get going," Brock said quietly before turning to walk away.

"Brock, wait," Misty spoke up. Brock turned to face the younger girl, "What you did last night..." She trailed off thinking about it, "It was a little scary. The idea of," she paused again as she tried to keep her voice steady, "_killing_ Pokemon. It's scary. But while I don't think I'll ever be okay with it," she smiled uneasily, "I understand, and I thank you for protecting us. I know it must not be easy for you."

Ash looked at her questionably for a moment before agreeing, "Misty's right. You were just trying to protect us, and I know that if anyone hurt Pikachu as bad as that nidoqueen hurt Happiny, well, I wouldn't be very happy about it either." He smiled, too.

Brock looked at the pair of them for a moment before smiling, "Thanks, guys. I-"

"But," Ash interrupted, "could you try not to do it _that_ much. We're trying to find a cure, remember?" Ash's smile was gone. He was dead serious.

Brock nodded, "I'll try, Ash."

Ash seemed to think the response was good enough, so he changed the subject, "So, that's Mt. Moon?" He was looking off in the distance. It had been harder to see the night before, but now it was in plain view. The mountain was fairly small in comparison to others, but it still towered high into the clouds.

"Yeah," Misty said, "that's where we're heading." Without another word, the trio set off towards the mountain.

* * *

"Zu!" The small bat Pokemon ducked into a small crevice as a stream of his brothers and sisters flocked past. The poison type was confused and tired, but most of all he was scared. Why were they acting like this? Why would they attack him so suddenly? Why did they look so strange? The young zubat nursed his injured wing. What had happened to his family?

* * *

"Well, this is it. You guys ready to catch another mutant?" Ash was genuinely excited. All this traveling and battling, while horrible when you think about why they were doing it, was everything he'd ever wanted. He couldn't help but think that in another world, he would aspire to the very best like no one ever was. Ash's daydreams were cut short when he realized that Misty and Brock were already walking into the cavern leading into the mountain, "Hey, guys wait up!"

They walked for a while taking care not to bring any unwanted attention to themselves. Most infected would probably be deeper in, but they couldn't be too careful, especially after the nidoqueen incident. Brock suddenly broke the silence, "I used to train here. This is where I caught my first Pokemon. My dad took me here, but we got separated. I was so scared. Then, Onix found me. When he didn't attack, I fed him some pokefood right out of my hand. By the time my dad found me, we were good friends." Brock smiled at the memory.

Ash and Misty smiled, too, but both of them were still too young to really remember the time before the infected. Their comfortable silence were short lived, however, as the sounds of a horde of shrieking zubats echoed through the cave. Pikachu immediately hopped off Ash's shoulder and looked around. "Pika," he growled at the air.

Brock and Misty didn't hesitate either each released a Pokemon, Onix and Starmie respectively, and prepared for what was to come. The raging flock came into view as they rounded a corner up ahead.

"Brock?" Ash said seriously.

"Yeah, Ash?" Brock responded hesitantly.

"Don't kill them."

Brock glanced at the younger boy, but the look was not reciprocated. There was no argument. Ash was ordering. "Wouldn't dream of it," Brock whispered as Pikachu let loose his first attack.

The zubat were met by the paralyzing force of Pikachu's thunderwave dropping some of them instantly. A few were more persistent and bared their fangs as they prepared to bite. "Onix, Rock Throw." Onix roared as many small rock fragments flew at the incoming infected and forced them to fly out of the way. Some weren't so lucky and received direct hits from the attack and they fell limply to the ground.

Ash's stomach clenched as he wondered whether they were still alive, but he didn't have much time to dwell on it. About three zubat had been about to swarm Pikachu when a water gun from Starmie blasted them away. Pikachu responded in kind by electrocuting a group that had been about to attack Misty. Misty and Ash made brief eye contact and they nodded to one another, "Starmie, use water gun to soak them," Misty began.

"And Pikachu, use thundershock to bring them down," Ash finished. Their "Soak-and-Shock" technique had worked wonders thus far, so it was no surprise when the zubats began falling like, well, beedrill. Soon enough the cavern was clear again.

After checking to see whether the zubat were still breathing, an idea that Brock went along with reluctantly, they continued cautiously until, "Zu..."

"Starmie-!" "Pikachu-!" Ash and Misty yelled at the same time.

"Wait!" Brock held up his hand and both the younger children and their Pokemon stopped in their tracks, "That doesn't sound like the bloodthirsty cry of an infected, does it?" Misty and Ash looked at each other confusedly while Brock looked around the small tunnel. "There!" Brock held his hand out to the wall and the four others were convinced that he'd gone crazy.

"Zu?" A small head poked out of a crack. It was a zubat, but this one wasn't green and snarling. That's not to say it was healthy, it's wing appeared to be broken and it looked absolutely terrified.

"It's alright, little guy," Brock cooed. It was strange seeing him change so drastically. One second he's perfectly okay with killing a swarm of Pokemon and the next he's baby talking to one. "Don't worry. I want to help you."

The little bat Pokemon didn't believe him, but he didn't really have much option aside from staying in the crack in the wall for the rest of his life, "Zubat?"

Pikachu scampered forward taking up his self-appointed position of human-pokemon ambassador, "Pi Pika Pikapi Pikachupi Pikachuka."

"Zu Zu Zubatzu bat bat," Zubat retorted fearfully.

"Pi Pi Pika Chupika."

"Zu?"

"Pi."

Zubat looked up from the little mouse and made "eye contact" with Brock and nodded gratefully, "Zubat Zu."

Brock smiled, "Great. I'll get right to work." He scooped up the injured Pokemon taking care not to touch the broken wing and sat on the ground. He began to take things out of his bag: Bandages, Potions, Splints, etc.

As Brock worked Ash and Misty grew nervous. Standing around in a highly infected zone wasn't really their idea of "safe" and Brock was taking a long time. "Maybe Happiny could help and you guys could done faster?" Ash suggested hopefully.

Brock stopped. "No."

"Why not?" Ash pressed.

"Because."

"Because wh-"

"Because, Ash! That's why!" Brock yelled.

Ash backed up. "Sorry," Ash muttered with a hurt voice.

Brock's expression softened, "No, I'm sorry." He paused, "Ever since the thing with Nidoqueen... I can never be too careful, ya know? We got really lucky when Happiny wasn't seriously hurt, but that was just outside Mt. Moon. Imagine the danger she could be in if I brought her out in here."

"Well, while you're worrying about the safety of one Pokemon, you're endangering all of them by having us just sit here like this. If Happiny helps, you guys can finish up and we can get moving. Otherwise, we're all in danger," Misty reasoned.

Brock opened his mouth to argue, but he was at a loss. He nodded, "Fine." He released Happiny from her pokeball and without a single order from Brock set at work patching up the bat. As Ash and Misty suspected, they were done in a few minutes and Brock was able to pack up his stuff. "There ya go, buddy. You're all taken care of. Watch out for more infected, alright?" They began to walk away.

"Zu..." Zubat said quietly.

Brock stopped and turned around, "Hmm?"

"Zubat Zu..."

Brock stared at the Pokemon for a while before pulling out an empty pokeball from his bag, "Did you want to come with me?" Brock's face was serious but warm.

"Zu?"

Brock smiled, "Well, do you?"

"Zu!" Zubat wobbled over exictedly and touched his forehead to the pokeball. He was absorbed in red light and the pokeball dinged.

Brock grinned to himself, "That's three Pokemon I've caught in this mountain."

_A/N: I know it's short. Please don't hate me. I'm gonna try and write another chapter tomorrow, I promise. Hope you guys liked this chapter anyway. I let Brock be caring in this one like he's supposed to be and I rewarded him with a zubat. Also, I threw in the first line of the anime theme as a treat. Please feel free to review. I always appreciate feedback. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	17. Chapter 17

_A/N: Hey, guys. Sorry for not updating on Saturday like I said. I was going to, but like always something came up. But you don't want to hear excuses, so I'll just get right to it._

_If I owned Pokemon, Lucario would be labeled as a pseudo-legendary. I don't know about you guys, but the movie wasn't called Garchomp and the Mystery of Mew._

"Nice catch, Brock, and we'll gladly throw you a party later, but right now we need to get moving," Misty was glancing around nervously.

Brock seemed to snap out of his nostalgic trance and nodded, "Right." He put Zubat's pokeball in his pocket and they set off.

The cave had many twists and turns, but Brock had been there enough times that he could navigate them. Before long, they saw a light at the end of the tunnel. Puzzled, Ash asked, "Is that the exit?"

Brock shook his head, "No. I just figured that since we were looking for some kind of extra-powerful Pokemon that we'd have more luck searching closer to the summit." And sure enough, when the four of them, including Pikachu, walked out of the dreary cave they were high up. As Ash peered over the edge of the cliff there appeared to be a twenty foot drop to the ground.

"Wow. I didn't even realize that we were going up," Ash commented.

"Yeah," Brock responded also looking out, "My dad took me up here to see the view." He paused, "Everything looks a lot different now." The pair of them stared out over the landscape. The land had once been lush and green, but ever since the infection spread, the plants were dying. The green had turned to brown and the streams and rivers that criss-crossed across the region were dark and uninviting. Brock wondered if any wild water Pokemon were still pure.

"Uh, guys?" Misty's voice was small which was odd because she was usually so loud. It didn't take much for the boys to realize why she had lowered her voice. When they turned around they were shocked to see the giant looming figure of a Snorlax standing on the ledge above them.

Brock ran out in front protectively, "Both of you, stay behind me."

"But Brock," Ash said cautiously, "He's not green."

Brock glanced back, "What?"

"He's not green. I don't think he's infected," Ash elaborated.

"That doesn't matter. Snorlax usually stay asleep. If this one's awake then there's something wrong," Brock said in a matter-of-factly way.

"Hey, Snorlax!" Ash bellowed blatantly disregarding Brock's heed, "Is everything okay up there?"

"Ash!" Brock and Misty yelled.

"Do you need help?" Ash continued ignoring his friends. Snorlax stared at them curiously, but after a few moments he shook his head and trudged away. "Well there you have it," Ash said proudly, "No mutants here. Snorlax would have told us." Brock and Misty just stared at the raven haired boy with their mouths slightly agape. "What?" Ash asked confused.

"You're unbelievable, Ash," Misty decided as she rolled her eyes.

"Thank you," Ash smiled taking it as a compliment.

Brock sighed and massaged his temples, "Alright. Well, since apparently there's no mutant around here. We should just get going."

The other two nodded and they headed back to the inside of the cavern. They'd made it almost halfway to exit of the cave when they heard it. A booming cry of pain and a crashing _thud_ coming from above. "Snorlax!" Ash yelled and immediately started running back to where they had seen the Sleeping Pokemon with Pikachu at his heels.

"Ash, wait!" Misty yelled and started after the pair of them. Brock was left alone and stood rooted to the spot unsure of what to do. Snorlax was a large and powerful Pokemon. If that really was Snorlax that they heard, what had been strong enough to take _him_ down? "Brock, let's go! We have to help Snorlax."

Brock snapped back into reality and shook off any fear that he held, "Right!" And he ran after his two companions.

* * *

The humans that Snorlax encountered may have seemed friendly, but that didn't mean he could trust them. He couldn't trust anyone. He was all alone on this mountain and he preferred it that way. He didn't have to worry about anyone else and he didn't have to rely on anyone to worry about him. After leaving the humans he finished his morning search route and resolved that he was safe for the time being.

He stuffed his face with the food that he had gathered the previous night and as he finished the last of it he felt the familiar sensation of drowsiness begin to overcome him. After one last look around to make sure he was alone, he lay down, closed his eyes and fell asleep.

"Para! Parasect!" Snorlaxes eyes fluttered open at the sound. His gaze focused on the six legged figure that was on his stomach. The bug Pokemon didn't look by any means like a normal Parasect. It was almost as big as he was and instead of only having two pinsirs, it had six spiney green tipped ones. Not only that, but the mushroom took on more of a shell appearance and was a sickly brown color. It had large overgrown fangs that were have as big as his giant pinsirs and those fangs were about to sink into Snorlax's skin.

Instinctively, Snorlax threw the giant Mushroom Pokemon off while standing. It was at this point that another new trait of the parasite was revealed. From under it's shell-like mushroom slid two giant wings that buzzed like a Yanmega. Snorlax tried to tackle the creature, but it appeared as though the bug type was much faster than usual as well because it easily dodged. Then, it flew straight at him and slashed right across his stomach. The cut dug deep and Snorlax let loose a bellowing screech before collapsing to the ground.

Terrified, Snorlax resorted to curling himself up into a Defense Curl and shielding himself from the Parasects onslaught. It was at that point that the giant Pokemon started using Fury Cutter. It wasn't nearly as painful as Slash, at least not at first, but with each hit it hurt more and more. The fourth and most powerful Cut was coming and Snorlax knew that it would be the end of him.

"Pikachu, Thunderwave!" Snorlax opened his eyes in time to see a electrical wave wash over Parasect as it was about to deliver its final attack and it stopped in its tracks. Snorlax was soon joined by the boy that had yelled at him earlier, "Snorlax, are you okay?"

"Ash, let me take care of him. You deal with the mutant!" said the other boy from earlier, "When you've got him cornered I'll catch him. Got it?"

The boy, Ash his name was, nodded, "Right." He smiled reassuringly at Snorlax before taking a step back, "Misty, soak and shock?"

"I don't think that'll work, Ash," said the girl, Misty, "Parasects are part grass type, so neither water nor electric attacks will be that effective. We need another strategy."

Ash looked over desperately, "Like what? Pikachu only knows electric attacks."

Misty thought for a moment, "What about Eevee?"

Ash pondered this for a moment, "Eevee's not as strong as Pikachu."

"As long as he knows a normal move, it won't matter," Misty pressed.

Ash thought for another second or two before nodding, "Alright." He reached into his pocket for Eevee's pokeball, "Let's go, Eevee!" Eevee burst out of the pokeball happily having spent a lot of time inside in recent days.

"Vee!" He chirped.

"Alright, Eevee. I need you to be very careful. This Pokemon is extremely dangerous and you could get hurt. So, I need you to use your Quick Attack to get in close and stay out of its reach and use tackle to deal damage." Eevee nodded, "And Pikachu, watch Eevee's back. If Parasect gets too close, use a thundershock to distract him." Pikachu nodded as well.

The two Pokemon scurried off to carry out Ash's plan. Meanwhile, Misty released Staryu and Starmie from their pokeballs, "Alright, guys. Ash can't do this alone. Neither of you can use water type moves. They won't work. So, Staryu, I need you to use Swift. Try and aim for the wings so that it becomes less mobile. And Starmie, use Rapid Spin to avoid attacks while using tackle to do damage. I don't want either of you getting hurt." The two starfish Pokemon "nodded" and followed Ash's Pokemon.

For a while, it looked like their plan was working. Staryu was make it hard for Parasect to fly leaving it only with the ability to slash because it didn't have enough to charge up fury cutter. Eevee and Starmie were darting all around it making it very difficult for them to get hit. On the off chance that Parasect would get close, however, Pikachu would launch a thundershock in retaliation. Parasect was growing weak, but it still had a few tricks up it's sleeve.

Aiming for Ash instead of the Pokemon, Parasect let loose a stun spore attack. The orange powder flew from it's mushroom directly at Ash, but Ash was light on his feet and managed to avoid it, "Nice try, but you won't catch me that easily!" Parasect seemed to take that into consideration when it launched it's next attack because this time it was aimed at Misty.

Misty wasn't as fast as Ash and he knew it, so without a second thought, Ash ran over and pushed Misty out of the way putting himself right in the way of the attack. "Ash!" Misty cried as Ash stiffened from receiving the full force of the attack. Ash fell to ground and didn't move. Misty rushed to Ash's side and looked him over. His eyes were shut and he wasn't moving.

"What happened?" Brock yelled from his place next to Snorlax.

"Ash is hurt!" Misty cried as her eyes began to swim with tears, _It's all my fault. He was trying to protect me. _Misty buried her head in Ash's chest as she began to cry.

The distraction was enough to throw everyone off balance. Everyone except for Parasect, of course. Parasect slashed at Starmie sending it skidding across the ground fainting instantly, but before it had the chance to do the same to Eevee, it happened. As the sun reached it's highest point in the sky, Eevee began to glow pure white. He changed shape and size as the sun seemed to shine with him. When the light faded, standing before them was an Espeon.

Before Parasect had the chance to react, Espeon let loose a powerful Swift attack that forced the Mushroom Pokemon back. Espeon then quickly ran to stand in front of Ash and Misty. He was immediately joined by Staryu and Pikachu on either side and without any order from their trainers they fired off their attacks. Staryu and Espeon used their respective Swift attacks, but Pikachu had a surprise of his own.

After charging up for what they thought would be a thundershock, Pikachu condensed the electricity into his tail where a ball formed. He then proceeded to do a front flip launching the Electro Ball at Parasect. All three hit Parasect directly and he was sent flying off in the opposite direction.

"Wow, guys. That was amazing," Brock exclaimed joining the others.

A new voice penetrated the area, "It certainly was." Brock spun around to face the owner of the voice and his jaw dropped. Standing before him was a tall, lean man with spikey red hair. His atire reminded Brock of a superhero as he wore black and red spandex in addition to a red and black cape that hung over his shoulders. Standing next to the man was a large, orange dragon Pokemon that was unmistakeably the pseudo-legendary Dragonite.

"You're Lance Grey," Brock managed.

"And you're Brock Slate, the former Pewter City Gym Leader. I recognize you from your inauguration into the Official Pokemon League," Lance said patiently.

"You're Lance Grey," Brock repeated. He wasn't usually the fanboy type, but this was the former Indigo League Champion. He once held dominion over both the Kanto and Johto regions.

Lance's face was very serious, "Look, we don't have much time. We must kill the Mutant Parasect if we are to study it and find the cure that we all so desperately seek. Or did you think that you three were the only ones searching?"

Brock shook off his starstruck expression, "Well, we took care of him, so all you really need to do is capture him, right?" He was hoping that Lance would agree.

"Wrong. That is a very strong Pokemon and I doubt that no matter how impressive your Pokemon's display of power may have been that it will have been strong enough to truly defeat it. If you don't mind, I'll take care of it." Lance began to make his way towards where Parasect had been sent.

"Wait!" Brock yelled after him. Lance turned his head slightly, "Do you have to kill it?"

Lance raised an eyebrow, "Are you meaning to tell me that you wish to take mercy on this abomination?"

Brock stared at his feet thinking of what to say, "Well, if we just kill it," he paused, "then what makes us better than it? Even if it's for the greater good, this Pokemon didn't ask for this. It's not its fault."

"Well, if you really want to be merciful towards, why not put it out of its misery?" Lance retorted his patience thinning.

He had a point, but Brock wasn't prepared to give up. Ash certainly wouldn't, "Please, Lance." He moved so that Lance could see Ash's motionless figure on the ground and Misty crying her face still buried in Ash's chest, "For them?"

Lance stared at the pair of them as Espeon, Pikachu and Staryu gathered around as well, all of them with looks of concern and worry on their faces. Lance sighed, "Fine." He pulled his cape back to reveal that a small metal tube at his waist. He wrapped his fingers around it and pressed a small red button on the side. A small, white line slithered out of the tube and hung out of the end like a rope. The result was what appeared to be a whip of some kind.

"What's that?" Brock asked curiously.

"Infected Pokemon can't be captured by normal pokeballs. This is called a PV Canister. It allows the user to catch infected Pokemon inside," Lance explained, but Brock only became more confused.

"I know what a PV Canister is. I have a few, but mind are much bigger and they shoot beams of light. They don't do_ that_," He said indicating the whip-like energy rope.

"You must have an older model, but we really don't have time to discuss this right now," Lance explained as Parasect lumbered back into view. It didn't have so much as a chance to speak it's name before Lance ordered, "Dragonite, use Dragon Rush." Dragonite immediately took off at breath taking speed while it's body began to glow bright blue. It slammed into the parasect and the bug Pokemon flew straight up in the air. Lance swung the energy whip back and then whipped it forward so that it wrapped around the mutant Pokemon. Parasect immediately turned white and the whip drew it into the small canister.

"Wow," Brock managed.

Lance turned around nonchalantly, "Now that that's taken care of. Let's get that boy to the hospital."

"Snorlax!" the large Pokemon boomed as he rose onto his two legs. It winced in pain, but he ignored the pain as he lumbered over to the small gathering around Ash, "Snor."

Misty finally lifted her head at the sudden presence. Her eyes were red and puffy as she sniffled, "I hope you realize what Ash has done for you. When he heard you being attacked, he didn't waste a second before coming to try and save you." Her voice was laced with anger, but her eyes were full of sadness.

"Snor..." Snorlax sighed.

"M-Misty..." All heads turned toward where the sound had come from. Ash had woken up and he was struggling to move, "A-are you o-okay?"

Misty's eyes began to fill with tears again, "Oh, Ash, you idiot! Why would you do that?"

Ash smiled, "I promised to p-protect you."

"I don't think any of you realize the severity of the situation. This young man has been paralyzed by a Mutant Parasect. If he doesn't get to the hospital soon, the effects may become permanent," Lance had lost his patience. "He can ride back with me on Dragonite, and the two of you can ride my other dragonite, but that means that you must return all your Pokemon. At the most, my dragonites can support the wait of two people."

"W-what about s-snorlax? H-he's still hurt," Ash stuttered.

"If he's not one of your Pokemon, I'm afraid there's nothing I can do," Lance said solemnly.

"H-he's mine," Ash said and Snorlax stared at him confused, "He's my P-Pokemon and he's c-coming with us or I'm n-not going." Snorlax stared dumbstruck at Ash. How could anyone be so kindhearted? No one had ever been so nice to him.

"Don't be ridiculous, boy. You need to go to the hospital right away," Lance marched over to Ash to retrieve him, but, suddenly, Snorlax stood in the way.

Ash smiled, "I t-told you. He's m-mine." Then, Ash's arm began to twitch as he struggled to move it. After a few moments of failed attempts to physically move his hand, he looked down at Misty, "M-Mist? Can you g-get me Snorlax's p-pokeball?" Misty looked at him and understood. She reached into Ash's pocket and pulled out an empty pokeball, "You ready t-to get in your ball, Snorlax?" Snorlax nodded.

Misty smiled as she touched the ball to Snorlax and he went inside. The ball dinged immediately as a sign of Snorlax's capture and Misty placed the ball back in Ash's pocket. Ash smiled, "Th-there. Now, we c-can go."

Lance simply shook his head amused at the children's actions, "Good. Let's hope that little stunt didn't cost you your ability to move." The condition was serious, but for once Lance kept his voice light. Lance lifted Ash onto Dragonite's back before releasing his other dragonite for Brock and Misty.

After everyone was on a dragonite and all the Pokemon were returned, except for Pikachu, of course, they were ready to go. It took a little bit of convincing for Lance to give the okay to let Pikachu out of a pokeball, but since Pikachu is a very small Pokemon, he eventually conceded. Then, Lance said the words that Misty didn't want to hear, "To Cerulean!"

_A/N: There. An extra long chapter for you guys. I hope you like it. Espeon and Snorlax in the same day. Wowza. Anyone have a guess as to what Ash's final team is going to be? And Lance shows up as powerful, majestic and, frankly, jerkish as ever. Lance isn't a bad guy. He's a good person. He's just a little rough around the edges, I think. Anyway, always feel free to review. I welcome it. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	18. Chapter 18

_A/N: Hey, guys. So, I have a lot more free time now that I'm getting into the school rhythm. I'm gonna try and post more chapters, or at least longer ones. Shoutout to HunterKiller1014. I really appreciate your feedback. Thank you for continually reviewing. It really does mean a lot and I hope you keep doing it. But anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter._

_If I owned Pokemon, Ash would still have his Pokemon League Expo. Hat. A million postcards! I mean seriously. Come on..._

It didn't take long at all to get to Cerulean. Lance's dragonites were lightning fast and Cerulean was pretty close to Mt. Moon. When they got there, the guards let them through immediately upon seeing the state that Ash was in.

Lance and Brock supported Ash as they made their way to the closest Pokemon Center. Nurse Joy took all the injured Pokemon and had her Chansey fetch a stretcher for Ash. Once she had, Ash was placed on it and all of them were taken away leaving Lance, Brock and Misty alone.

They sat quietly for awhile, unsure of what to say. After the adrenaline of the fight had died they were left with Ash still hurt and nothing they could do. No one wanted to talk about Ash, but nothing else seemed appropriate, so they just remained silent. After a while, Lance finally spoke up, "He'll be fine." Both heads turned towards him and their eyes told him to keep going, "I've seen people much worse and still recover. I don't know Ash, but he seems like a fighter. I'm sure he'll be fine."

"Then, what was with all that, 'If we don't hurry, the condition could become permanent' stuff?" Brock said a little on edge.

"That was just to get you guys to stop wasting time. The fact is, Ash had to get to the hospital as soon as possible or he would be in big trouble," Lance said flatly.

"So, you lied?" Brock continued irritation blatant in his voice. Misty remained quiet, but no one seemed to take notice of it.

"That _lie_ probably saved your friend. Now, if you don't mind, I-" Lance was cut off.

"Are you all friends of Ash Ketchum?" Nurse Joy had come back into the room. The three of them immediately stood and nodded. "Come with me."

Nurse Joy led them back into the human care section of the center. After the infection began to spread and humans started gaining more serious injures, like ones a Pokemon might get from a battle, Pokemon Centers started catering to humans as well. Hospitals sent many Doctors and Nurses to Pokemon Centers to aid the overworked Nurse Joys and, eventually, Hospitals became a dying breed altogether. There were still a few in really big cities like Saffron or Celadon, but for the most part Pokemon Centers took care of people and Pokemon alike.

Nurse Joy opened a door and led the trio into a small room. Lying on the bed was the unconscious form of Ash. Misty immediately rushed to his side without waiting for the "okay" from Nurse Joy. "How's he doing?"

"Really well, actually," Nurse Joy said with a tone of mild confusion.

"Why do you sound so confused?" Lance said curiously.

"Well, normally when we get a human suffering from a status ailment like paralysis, poison, or even sleep the effects are very potent. I've seen many in Ash's condition never walk again." At this every head in the room was staring at her expectantly. "But that's the strange part." She looked at them all with an expression of absolute bewilderment, "He's already showing signs of recovery."

She continued, "Usually when a human suffers from typical Pokemon status ailment, it takes a few weeks for the patient to recover at least, but your friend, Ash may very well be up and about in less than a week." She paused and smiled, "Either your friend is a Pokemon, or he has one of the greatest recovery rates I've ever seen."

Brock and Lance stared curiously at Ash, but Misty simply stared at Nurse Joy. "Someone else said that," Misty said remembering. It was the Nurse Joy in Pewter. She said that Ash had almost immediately recovered from being poisoned even without an antidote. They gave it to him anyway, just to be safe, but Nurse Joy said that he would have been fine without it. She said that he has a high recovery rate."

Nurse Joy nodded, "It's certainly interesting to think about. How such a small boy can be so strong."

"How indeed?" Lance mumbled, "Brock, can you come with me for a moment?"

Brock tore his gaze from Nurse Joy. Having received the news that his friend would be fine, he was about to profess his undying love for her, but his trance had been broken when the former champion spoke his name, "Uh, yeah. Sure." He took one last love stricken look at Nurse Joy before he sighed dreamily and followed Lance out of the room.

"That friend of yours is quite strange," Nurse Joy commented after Brock left the room.

Misty didn't respond, she simply turned her head back to Ash and stared at him for a few moments longer before making her decision, "Nurse Joy?"

The Nurse looked up from the clipboard she had been reading, "Hmm?"

"Tell Brock and Ash that I'll be back. I just have something that I need to take care of."

Nurse Joy nodded hesitantly, "Of course. Where are you going?"

Misty looked up at the older woman with her expression free of any emotion, "Home."

* * *

Lance and Brock headed into an empty room. "What's up?" Brock asked.

"Tell me everything you know about the virus," Lance was very serious.

Brock looked at him confused for a few moments before ultimately deciding to go along with it, "Uh... Well, the short version is that it makes Pokemon stronger and more ferocious. The virus is transmitted through Pokemon Blood, so it's highly contagious. Especially during battle." Lance motioned for him to continue.

"The effects aren't immediate and usually come in steps. First, the Pokemon will begin to grow stronger much faster. That could mean better moves or bigger size or anything that makes them better suited for combat really. Next, the Pokemon will run a high fever as the virus begins to spread to their brain. Then, once the virus has taken over completely, the Pokemon has an insatiable desire to destroy everything. Infected Pokemon usually have a green tint to them, whether it's their eyes or their claws or just their overall appearance. Some even change more drastically, like the parasect." He paused, "That's all I know," He finished.

Lance nodded, "You were right except for one thing." Brock raised an eyebrow. "That parasect was of a completely different breed. The ones that run around and cause destruction, those are virus-based. They get infected and run with it. The mutated ones, however, are DNA-based. Don't ask me how, but somehow the virus has merged with their DNA and changed them into some twisted, freakshow version of their normal selves."

Brock was confused. How could the virus merge with Pokemon DNA? If the virus was inside something long enough, did it begin to merge with its DNA, or were they born like that? Before Brock could think about it more in depth, Lance spoke up again. He was facing out the window of the room, "Tell me, Brock. Do you think it's possible for a human to contract the virus?"

Brock was taken aback. That was a strange question. It was called the Pokemon Virus. Of course, only Pokemon could catch it, "I don't think so. Why do you ask?"

Lance nodded at his response, "No reason. It's just something that we have to consider. If humans can catch it, than we have to be a lot more careful. Careful about how close we get to an infected Pokemon, careful about how we treat Pokemon who could be infected," He paused, "Careful about who our friends are." Brock didn't respond. He wasn't sure what Lance was getting at, but he didn't like it. Lance continued, "In any case, with Ash recovering I must leave you for now. I have important business that I must attend to."

"Wait," Brock spoke up just as Lance was heading out the door. Lance stopped, "my friends and I have a big job ahead of us and we could really use some more PV Canisters if you don't mind."

Lance didn't bother to turn around, "Well, since you and your _friends_ will be here for a little while, I'll send some of the older models to you. We don't really need them anymore with all the more advance models we have." With that, Lance Grey left and Brock couldn't have been happier about it. He seemed much nicer on TV.

* * *

Ash jolted awake. He'd had the dream about the shifting figure chasing him again. He'd been having that dream a lot lately. After rubbing his eyes he looked around to see if anyone was in the room with him, "Amazing! You already have full control of your arms and back!" Nurse Joy was standing near the doorway and staring at him with astonishment and, well, joy.

It was then that Ash remembered. He'd taken the Stun Spore attack for Misty and become paralyzed, but where was Misty, and Brock, and that other man with the spikey red hair? How long had it been? He decided to ask Nurse Joy these questions, "Nurse J-"

She cut him off, apparently knowing what he would ask, "Your two male friends stepped out of the room for a bit and your little girlfriend had to go somewhere, too."

"Where did she ha-" He paused, "Wait! She's not my girlfriend!"

Nurse Joy just giggled, "Oh, I'm sorry. She just seemed so worried about you. I only assumed-"

"Whatever," Ash waved it off, "Where did she go?"

"I'm not sure. She didn't really say."

That was strange. Why would Misty just run off without saying where she was going? Just then, Brock returned to the room and he didn't appear to be in a good mood. He even ignored Nurse Joy, "Ash. Lance left. He was acting strange toward the end though."

"Lance?" Ash said confused, "Whose Lance?"

Brock shook his head, "Lance was the guy with the spikey red hair? He helped bring you here."

Ash nodded, "Oh, yeah. He was kind of a jerk."

Brock shrugged, "At least he got you here in good time. You look so much better already. Your stutter's gone and it looks like you can move your upper body pretty well."

"Yeah..." He trailed off a little as his mind was on Misty again, "By the way, do you know where Misty is?"

"We were just about to ask the same question." Everyone in the room looked towards the source of the voice. Standing in the doorway were three beautiful girls. The one who had spoken had long blonde hair that shined in the light. She was flanked by the two other girls: one with blue hair and the other with pink. Each had an expression of worry on their face that Brock could only guess was as a result of Misty's absence. The blonde spoke again, "Do you know where our sister is?"

* * *

Misty knew her way around town well. After she left the Pokemon Center, she made her way directly to her destination, the Cerulean City Pokemon Gym and her old home.. She hadn't visited the place in a long time and she hadn't taken the chance on the night she left the first time, so she only thought it right that she visit before she left again.

Ash had gotten hurt because of her and he would continue to get hurt because of her as long as they traveled together. Misty was intent on paying Ash back for all he's done for her, and if that means staying away from him, so that he doesn't get hurt himself anymore, then so be it. That's what she told herself anyway.

In reality, she didn't want to leave Ash. She wanted to stay with him and take care of him and help him in any way she could, but she knew that he didn't need her. Not the same way she needed him anyway. He had Brock and Pikachu. No. It was better if she just left. Ash wouldn't get hurt anymore and that's all that mattered. Not any silly feelings of hers. No amount of pain was worth a silly little crush.

Finally, after walking for a while, she reached the gym. The doors were locked, but Misty knew another way in. The front door was the entrance to the house, but the door to the gym itself was still open. They never had a reason to lock it with all the Pokemon gone. She could just go in the gym entrance and use the key under the mat to get in through the side door. She wanted to see the gym anyway.

It took a little bit of a jiggling to get open, but eventually the old door creaked open allowing Misty inside. She took in a deep breath. After all these years, the gym still had the faint smell of chlorine. Misty remembered the smell following her wherever she went. Washing it out of her hair, smelling it on her pillow, and anywhere remotely close to the pool. She had hated it then, but now she craved the smell more than anything. It reminded her of a time before the virus. It reminded her of her parents.

Suddenly, a distant memory came back to Misty.

_6 years ago_

"Misty?"

"Mist, honey, where are you?" Misty's parents were calling for her, but she was frozen in fear. She had come to the river to see the water Pokemon there when she stumbled upon a silly little one. It was orange and dopey and all it did was splash around. It wasn't all orange though. It was a little green, too. Misty had never seen anything like it.

Then, there was a bright flash of light from the water. The little orange fish was changing into a giant blue snake thing. It roared a powerful roar and Misty was terrified. The snake was a little green, too, with red eyes and sharp teeth. Finally, Misty let loose a horrified scream, "AAAHHH!

"Misty!" Her parents ran around a nearby corner and headed toward her while drawing their pokeballs. "Go, Lanturn!" her mother yelled releasing the electric water Pokemon.

"Go, Tentacruel!" her father released his own Pokemon.

They both stepped in front of Misty, "Luke, what is this? I've never seen a green gyarados before," her mother said once they'd gotten close enough.

"I don't know, Sarah, my darling, but whatever it is, we have to take it down here and now," Luke, Misty's father, responded.

"You're right," said Sarah. She turned to Misty, "Honey, go home, okay? We don't want you to get hurt."

Little Misty looked at her mother with tears streaming down her cheeks, "But mommy, what if you and daddy get hurt?"

Sarah smiled kindly, "Mist, daddy and I will be fine. But even if did get hurt, we wouldn't blame you. We love you, sweetheart."

Misty sniffled and quickly threw her arms around her mother, "Okay, mommy. I love you." She ran over to her father and gave him a hug from behind. He was calling out orders to his Tentacruel, but the Gyarados was really strong. He just barely felt the little arms wrap around his legs, "I love you, daddy."

He looked down at his youngest daughter, "I love you, too, honey. Now, go. Quickly!"

Misty nodded and ran away from her parents, tears still running down her face. And that was the last time she saw them alive.

* * *

In the present, tears were running down the modern Misty's cheeks as she remembered. She looked around the gym and smiled, "They loved me." Her voice echoed around the room a bit. She closed her eyes cried a little more: half because her parents were dead, but the other half because they had genuinely loved her and they hadn't blamed her for what happened.

Misty's moment was short lived as a painfully familiar roar echoed around the room. Her eyes snapped open and from the light of the windows, she could see it. She didn't know if it had been there when she walked in, but it was certainly there now. Standing tall was a blue gyarados, and he didn't look too happy.

_A/N: Yay! Misty's got dead parents and a gyarados about to attack her. Wait... Those are bad things... Oh, well. I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens. By the way, you may have noticed I changed Violet's hair color to blue. That's the color that it's supposed to be, but when I wrote chapter five I kind of screwed up. Anyway, I changed it in that chapter and it's blue here as well, so there ya go. Anyways, feel free to review. It's always appreciated. I thank you all for reading. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	19. Chapter 19

_A/N: What's up, guys? So, we left Misty in a bit of a pickle yesterday. Giant Gyarados about to attack, her friends and family halfway across town, and she's got a fear of Gyarados that stems directly from the fact that her parents were killed by one. So, maybe a bit more than just a pickle. Shoutout to HunterKiller1014. As always, the reviews are greatly appreciated. Thanks to everyone for the support so far and, as always, happy reading!_

_If I owned Pokemon, Ash would have evolved more of his Pokemon. I know, I know. He's an underdog. It's part of his character, but if he wants to be a master, let's face it, his Pokemon have got to be the strongest they can be. Except for Pikachu, of course. Pikachu's the best._

"Where is our sister?" The blonde girl was desperate. She knew one of the guards that kept watch at the front gate and when she heard that from him that Misty was back in town, she and her sisters immediately went searching. The first place they could think to go was the Pokemon Center. If Misty wasn't going to come home, then she would at least be smart enough to go somewhere safe.

"We're trying to figure out the same thing," Ash said, "Apparently she just left and no one knows where she went." He looked at three girls curiously, "So, you're Misty's sisters? Why do you all have different colored hair?"

Brock stepped forward, "Don't mind him, ladies. I'd love to aid you in your search for little Misty."

The girls seemed briefly puzzled by Brock's forwardness, but then they smiled gratefully. The blunette spoke up, "Thank you. May we ask your name?"

"My name..." Brock paused for dramatic effect, "is Brock. And what names have you lovely ladies been blessed with?"

The girls giggled and Ash just stared on with confusion Were they actually enjoying this? "My name is Daisy," said the blonde.

"I'm Violet," said the blunette.

The pink haired girl smiled, "Lily."

"Amazing to meet you all. I was thinking that maybe after-"

"Have we forgotten that Misty is missing?!" Ash blurt out. The three sisters expressions immediately fell as they realized they'd gotten sidetracked.

"You're right," said Lily, "And what was your name?"

"My name's Ash. And Misty is our friend. Now, let's go find her." At this he attempted to climb out of the bed only to fall flat on his face. His legs were still paralyzed and, therefore, couldn't support his weight, "Can someone help me up?"

Brock, ashamed for the way he'd acted as well, walked over to Ash, and he and Nurse Joy assisted him back into bed. "You're not going anywhere," Nurse Joy scolded sounding a lot like Delia did when Ash would get sick.

And just as Ash would have acted if it were his mother, Ash pouted, "But..."

"No," Nurse Joy declared firmly, "You're not leaving for at least a few more days. You still don't have any feeling in your legs and you need rest."

Ash fell back into a lying position with an expression like he'd been told he wasn't allowed to play with his friends, "Fine."

Nurse Joy's expression immediately changed back to its normal, cheery state, "Good."

"Brock, take Pikachu with you," Ash said. Pikachu's ears perked up at this. He'd been taking a nap at the end of Ash's bed, "He could help and if I'm not allowed to go, I at least want him there."

Brock nodded, "You got it."

Ash looked at Pikachu, "You hear that, Pikachu? You're gonna help Brock find Misty."

"Pikachupi?" Pikachu yawned still in the process of waking up.

Ash smiled recognizing Pikachu's given name for Misty, "Yeah."

The five of them left shortly after that leaving a still bitter Ash with the very cheery Nurse Joy. Ash felt a little better knowing both Brock and Pikachu would be there, but he couldn't help but feel like Misty was already in big trouble.

* * *

Misty screamed and tried to run for the door, but Gyarados launched a large ball of fire at the doorway. The force of the blast pushed Misty off her feet. She landed on her butt right next to the edge of the pool. She looked over her shoulder to see Gyarados preparing another attack.

In a moment of desperation, Misty frantically grabbed one of her pokeballs from her pocket and tossed it. However, it wasn't Staryu or Starmie that appeared. It was the Pokemon Misty hadn't been able to use because there was no water. Misty's Goldeen was ready to fight, "Gol Goldeen."

Gyarados launched another fire ball at them and Goldeen immediately responded by blasted an orb of water in retaliation. The two spheres collided and mid air and neutralized each other. Gyarados seemed displeased with having been blocked, so he began to slither through the water to greet his new prey.

"Goldeen, be careful!" Misty yelled out to her Pokemon. A gyarados was certainly no joke and her little goldfish Pokemon was in big trouble if this one actually managed to land a hit.

The water Pokemon nodded, "Deen."

Misty was still nervous, but she needed to focus, "Goldeen, use supersonic!" Goldeen from underwater launched a barrage of rings up at Gyarados. The sound bounced around the room disorienting and confusing him, "Now, use Horn Attack!" Goldeen immediately responded by swimming up to the giant water snake and diving through the air with its single horn pointed at the behemoth.

Meanwhile, Gyarados was roaring and squirming wildly in an attempt to smack the goldfish with his tail. Fortunately for Misty, he accidentally smacked himself in the face. Goldeen's attack made contact piercing the skin of the Atrocious Pokemon.

He let out a screech of pain that drowned out the remnants of Goldeen's supersonic. No longer confused, he was free to attack the little fish at close range. He bared his fangs and snapped at her, but Goldeen was fast. She managed to speed out of the way, but only barely. "Watch out, Goldeen!" Misty didn't know what to do. Without Ash and Brock around to help, Misty would have to come up with her own plan.

* * *

"She's your sister. Where do you think she would have gone?" Brock and the girls were walking through town. They'd asked a few people in the Pokemon Center and apparently Misty had left a few minutes earlier, "She can't have gotten far, right?"

"Maybe she went back home?" Violet said hopefully.

"No," Daisy responded immediately, "She was upset. Where's the one place that Misty always went when she was upset?"

Lily straightened up at the realization, "The gym."

Brock nodded, "Alright. How do we get there?"

"The fastest way there is..." Daisy said as she and her sisters thought about the quickest route.

"That way!" The girls spoke simultaneously, but each were pointing in a different direction.

Daisy cleared her throat, "Girls, I'm the oldest and it most certainly is that way." She jutted her finger out with more authority.

Violet shook her head, "You spent all your time inside. I used to go out every single day and it's that way." She was pointing in the exact opposite direction.

Lily sighed, "You're both wrong. I used to go to the Pokemon Center all the time to talk to cute trainers and I always used to go this way." She was pointing down a random street away from both of the other girls.

Brock looked at them incredulously, "You've got to be joking."

All three heads looked at him, "About what?"

"Misty could be in big trouble. It doesn't really matter what the fastest way is, we need to move now!" The sisters may be pretty. Very, _very_ pretty. Oh, what Brock would do if he could just talk one of them into going on date with him... What was his point? Oh, yeah! They may be pretty, but they needed to straighten out their priorities.

They ended up taking Violet's path, but Brock was still puzzled about something, "Why the gym? What's so special about an old Pokemon Gym?" Then, it hit him, "Unless-"

"My sisters and I are Waterflowers. Our family once owned the gym here in the city," Violet said.

"That's why you three looked so familiar! You're the Sensational Sisters. I used to have posters of you-" Brock stopped mid-sentence as his face flushed red, "I mean..." He never got the chance to come up with a good excuse because just then they heard an explosion from a few blocks over.

The girls screamed, "What was that?"

Brock looked over to the source of the explosion and said, "You don't think?"

The girls were already running the source of the explosion, "Misty! We're coming!"

* * *

Misty was breathing heavily. Even though Goldeen was the one fighting, whenever a stray fire ball, or Dragon Rage as Misty had figured out, would get close to her, she would have to dive out of the way. With Gyarados's blatant disregard to aim, it's needless to say that Misty had been moving around quite a bit. Not only that, but the amount of hits that actually came close to Goldeen were taking their toll on her as well.

"Keep it up, Goldeen! I think we're starting to wear him down." They weren't, but they couldn't give up now. Misty didn't want to think of what would happen if they didn't. Deciding that she had to come up with a plan, she began to look around the room for something to aid her. The something caught her eye. Thinking quickly, she released Staryu from its pokeball, "Staryu, I need you to use Swift on the spinklers."

Staryu didn't hesitate. It fired off a stream of swift stars with laser point accuracy. They hit their target and as Misty had hoped, the sprinklers were set off. As the water fell like rain, Goldeen began to pick up speed. Now, she could not only evade Gyarados's attacks, but use a few of her own. Without the order from Misty, Goldeen began launching off more Water Pulse attacks in the form of big orbs of water.

With Goldeen's water attacks enhanced as well, Gyarados was starting to take actual damage and he didn't like that at all. As his rage began to build more and more a power seemed to unlock inside of him. A very dangerous power. After being hit with yet another Water Pulse to the face, Gyarados unleashed a very might roar. His snake-like body began to glow with an ominous red aura and his eyes took the same dark color.

Suddenly, filled with the desire to destroy everything, Gyarados began to rampage mercilessly. He sent Dragon Rage after Dragon Rage around the old gym blasting holes in the walls and ceiling. It didn't stop there though. He began to swing his tail dangerously and bite at Goldeen ferociously.

Even with her increased speed, Gyarados was doing some major damage now. Whether it was falling debris from the crumbling building or any of the water dragons painful attacks, Goldeen was getting hit left and right. Misty didn't know what to do. She was a little preoccupied trying to evade debris and fire balls herself. She'd even returned Staryu to its pokeball to avoid it getting hurt.

In one particularly dangerous close call, Misty dove towards a corner of the room to escape both a large piece of debris and Gyarados's tail swinging around. She peered up upon landing to find herself face to face with something that she never expected to find: An Egg. The egg was blue with white dots circling the perimeter near the top. She didn't have much time to examine it thoroughly, however, as there was another explosion. So, Misty quickly scooped up the egg and made her way to the water's edge.

"Gyarados! Do you know who I am? I'm Misty Waterflower. I'm going to be the greatest Water Pokemon Master and this is _my _gym. So, why don't you hit me with your best shot!" Misty wasn't sure where her bravery came from. Maybe she felt like she had to protect the egg. Maybe she was just tired of being scared all the time. But if Misty had to bet, she would probably say that she was doing _exactly_ what Ash would do in a situation like this.

Gyarados turned away from Goldeen who was now so damaged that she was barely conscious and faced the young girl. Misty took the opportunity to return the tired fish Pokemon now that she was no longer in danger from Gyarado's assault. Meanwhile, Gyarados began to charge up one final attack. The ball of fire grew to immense size and Misty could feel the heat coming off of it.

She closed her eyes and prepared herself to take what was coming. She waited for a few seconds, then a few seconds more. After she'd been standing there with her eyes closed for a good minute, she opened them again to find the fire ball frozen in the air in front of her, "Good job, Slowbro! Now, send it back at him!" At this, the fireball was launched by an unseen force back at Gyarados. He flew back from the damage of his own attack and crashed into the opposite wall.

Misty spun around at the sound of the voice. Standing in the doorway were Daisy and her Slowbro. Slowbro's eyes were fading back to normal after using a psychic attack. Lily and Violet were standing close behind and Brock seemed to be catching up as well, "Daisy, Lily, Violet, Brock!" Even though she hadn't left on the best of terms with her sisters, she was still pretty happy to see them. Especially considering they were saving her life.

As Misty looked over the group, she couldn't help but notice that Ash wasn't with them. This was understandable considering he had been unconscious when she left, but it didn't help the pit in her stomach, "Pikachupi!" Pikachu scurried in between their legs and jumped on Misty's shoulder. He nuzzled against her cheek.

"Hey there, Pikachu," seeing Ash's faithful companion made her feel a little better.

Daisy, Violet and Lily were quick to follow his lead as they huddled around Misty and gave her a hug, "Oh, Misty. After you left, we just felt terrible. We're sorry."

Misty just smiled, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have left. It's just that I overheard you talking about Mom and Dad and I thought you wouldn't want me around."

"That's ridiculous. We, like, love you."

"Guys!" Brock didn't want to interrupt the moment, but he didn't feel like he had much of a choice. Gyarados was beginning to shake and the entire building was beginning to collapse.

All heads turned toward the atrocious Pokemon. Daisy ran forward with Slowbro, "Stop him!"

The water-psychic type nodded, "Slooow." His eyes glowed blue as he attempted a disable attack. As Gyarados began to glow red, it became apparent that Slowbro's attack was having no effect.

"Oh, no..." Violet muttered.

"Pikachu, use thundershock!" Misty yelled.

Without a moment's hesitation, Pikachu leaped off Misty's shoulder and ran to the edge of the water, "Pikaaa-" He jumped high into the air, "CHU!" Electricity crackled off of the yellow rodent's form and slammed right into the Water-Flying type. The Pokemon roared in pain before crashing back into the water.

Continuing to think on her feet, Misty searched her pocket for an empty pokeball. She wrapped her fingers around it and tossed it at Gyarados. As the Pokemon retreated into the pokeball it began to wobble and shake as Gyarados struggled inside. After a few very long seconds, the ball finally dinged signifying the capture was complete, "I... I caught it." Misty blinked a couple times, "I caught it!"

"That was great, Little Sis!" Lily exclaimed.

"Good thinking, Misty," Brock agreed.

The ball returned to Misty's hand and she stared at it for a while, "Here." Misty held the ball out to Daisy, "Take it."

"W-what?" Daisy managed, "Why are you-"

"I couldn't. Gyarados are too powerful. It belongs with you guys. Besides, seeing him would remind me too much of Mom and Dad," Misty managed.

Daisy nodded, "Alright, Misty." She accepted the pokeball gratefully. It was then that she first noticed the egg in Misty's arms, "What's that?

Misty herself had forgotten about it, "Oh. I found it here."

Brock approached, "Let me see. I know a few things about Pokeeggs. I might be able to tell you what will hatch out of it."

Misty shook her head, "I want to wait and find out." She paused to look at her sisters imploringly, "That is if you don't mind if I keep it?"

They smiled, "It's all yours, Misty," Violet said kindly.

"Thank you," Misty said gratefully.

"There's still one more question though," Brock began, "Why did you leave the Pokemon Center in the first place?"

Misty suddenly looked at her feet, "Well, I'm just not sure if it'd be a good idea to travel with you guys anymore."

Brock looked at her curiously, "What do you mean?"

"All I do is get in the way. Ash was hurt up on Mt. Moon because of me. I just think that you'd do better without me," Misty spoke honestly.

Brock stared incredulously, "Misty... You've been so much help to both me and Ash. If not for your half of that 'Shocking Soaking Strategy" thing, we might not have made it out of a few binds. You're Pokemon sure came in handy when we were fighting that Parasect. And if not for you, Gyarados might have destroyed the gym. I don't know where we would be without you Misty, but I know we wouldn't make it very far. And I'm sure Ash would say the same thing."

Misty looked up at the older boy surprised to here so many nice things, "Th-thanks, Brock."

He smiled, "Just try to steer away from this crazy talk about leaving, okay?"

Misty smiled back and nodded, "I promise that I'll never think about leaving you guys again."

"Wait..." Daisy spoke up, "You're really leaving again?"

Misty had almost forgotten about her sisters, "Oh, uh... Yeah. I'm sorry, but my friends need me."

Tears started to build in her three older sisters eyes. Daisy stepped forward and gave Misty another big hug, taking care not to crush the egg that was still in her arms, "Please be careful."

Violet joined, "Come back soon."

And lastly Lily, "We'll miss you."

"I'll miss you guys, too," Misty said as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

The four sisters shared a nice group hug, that is until Brock tried to join claiming that he would miss the Sensational Sisters as well. Misty then delivered a swift smack to the back of his head and he released them, but the moment was over, "Well, we won't be leaving for at least a few more days with Ash recovering. I'll be sure to drop by the apartment every now and then to see you guys before I leave for real," Misty said sweetly.

Brock nodded, "I'll come, too!" He stepped forward to try and give the older girls another hug, but Misty threatened Brock with her balled up fist and he backed off.

"You want to walk with us back to the Pokemon Center?" Misty suggested. The three of them nodded and they left the old, broken building just as the sun was setting. And Misty didn't look back.

_A/N: Well, that was fun, right? Everything pretty much worked out. I mean the gym was pretty much trashed, but hey, at least no one died... Yet... MUAHAHAHA! Ahem... So, anyway. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Drop a review telling me what you think. I'll try to update again sometime soon. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	20. Chapter 20

_A/N: Hey, guys. Sorry I haven't posted in a while, but I think I've decided to post weekly now. Maybe bi-weekly if I'm feeling up to it. Shoutout to HunterKiller1014, __Isaak Magnum Valhyre, I am Lu, AND sortofbored for reviewing. That breaks my previous record of 3 reviews in between posts! *applause* Thank you! Thank you! But seriously, I know I say it every time, but I really do appreciate it. It keeps me going and makes me want to make each chapter great. But enough talk, let us read! Happy Reading!_

_If I owned Pokemon, Ash would have actually gone back for Pidgeot. Pidgeot was awesome and Ash promised to come back for him, but no. Never seen again. It's ridiculous, I tell ya. Ridiculous!_

"I have to go check on some other patients, I'll be back soon!" Nurse Joy said cheerily as she began to leave the room.

"Okay! I'll be here!" Ash replied with a similarly cheery expression. Nurse Joy smiled in acknowledgment and left the room. As soon as she did, Ash's expression changed to a very focused one as he began to think, _Okay, so she has three other patients, two of which are relatively close and one that is a bit farther away. If it takes her about seven and half minutes to check on each one then she should be back in about twenty-five minutes including travel time. Perfect!_

Ash pushed himself up into a sitting position and, using his arms, pushed himself to the edge of the bed so that his legs hung over and his feet touched the floor. He still couldn't feel his feet, so he couldn't be quite sure if he actually was touching the ground, but he didn't really have time to worry about that. The wheelchair that Nurse Joy had gotten for him was up against the opposite wall. She was always in the room when he needed it, so it was in a place where she could reach it, but he couldn't. He'd tried to escape four times already, but this time would be successful.

He began to sway forwards and backwards in order to gain momentum. Then, he propelled himself off the bed and onto the ground. He'd made it about a halfway to the chair. He used his arms to pull himself across the floor and to the chair. Once he'd made it, he used all his ten year old might to pull himself up onto the chair. Finally, after getting situated on his wheeled throne, he began to move.

Ash hadn't had too much practice in the chair between here and the bathroom, so he had some trouble steering his way out of the room, but once he was in the hallway, he pushed the wheels as hard as he could. He flew through the hallway leaving Nurses, Doctors and other patients in his wake. He looked into one of the rooms as he passed and saw Nurse Joy staring at him with a look of shock and confusion on her face. He smiled deviously as he thought about how he'd outsmarted her, _Ha! No one can catch me now. I am out of- _"Aah!" His wheelchair hit a bump while he wasn't paying attention and he flew off. He landed on his stomach right at the front door.

"Ash, what are you doing?"

Ash looked up to see Brock, Misty and her sisters staring at him peculiarly. Pikachu was at Brock's feet and he looked just as puzzled as the rest of them. Ash just smiled, "Hey! You found Misty!"

Misty stepped forward and knelt down squatted next to his sprawled body. She was carrying something in her arms, but from this angle, Ash couldn't quite see what it was. The look of amusement on her face wasn't masked in the slightest, "What are you doing on the floor?"

Pikachu scampered up and looked at Ash confused as well, "Pikapi?"

Ash blushed a little after remembering that he was, in fact, on the floor, "Well..."

"Mr. Ketchum!" The normally kind and cheery voice sounded shrill with annoyance, "What do you think you're doing?"

Ash cringed at the sound of the voice. She sounded just like his mom. Then again, there was one key difference between Nurse Joy and his mom, "Oh, Nurse Joy, my darling." Brock had practically leaped over Ash in order to grab the pink haired nurse's hands in his, "Please don't be upset. It pains me so to see you in such disarray. May I give you a massage to- OW! Hey!" His wooing was interrupted by Misty pulling him by the ear away from the poor woman.

"This is not the time for that," Misty muttered as she dragged him back to where Ash was still lying.

Nurse Joy seemed to regain her composure, "Right! Mr. Ketchum, I'm afraid that you must return to your room immediately, or else I'll-"

"Okay," Ash interrupted nonchalantly.

"W-what?" the nurse again appeared rather flustered.

"Sure. I'll go back to my room. Sorry for running like that. I just had to make sure that Misty was okay," Ash said this sincerely and casually.

"Well, alright then." She grabbed his wheelchair and helped him into it. She then turned to Misty, "Would you mind taking him back to his room, dear?"

Brock stepped forward yet again. "Not at all, _dear_," he cooed, "And maybe after he's settled in we could-"

Misty practically tossed him to the side this time, "No problem, Nurse Joy. Thank you for putting up with him while we were gone."

Nurse Joy's face shifted back into its normal cheery state once again, "Thank you, Miss Waterflower. And I'm happy to see that not only are you here safe and sound, but that you and your sisters are together again."

Misty blushed slightly at the attention, but nodded. Nurse Joy then proceeded to check on her other patients as planned and Brock hurried off after her. Misty decided to let it go, as it was tragically hopeless. She exchanged a quick goodbye with her sisters promising she would stop by soon and they left. Finally, she stepped in front of Ash, "Here, hold this." She held out the egg towards Ash and he reached out anxiously. Misty immediately pulled it away from his grasp and warned, "Be gentle."

"Alright, alright," Ash muttered as he gingerly picked up the egg, "What is this anyway?" Pikachu, who was now on his master's lap, was also staring at the egg curiously.

Misty walked around the back and began to push Ash, "It's an Pokemon Egg, stupid."

"Pokemon lay eggs?" Ash exclaimed as he shifted his gaze from the egg to Pikachu and back.

"What are you? Four? Of course they do. Well, sort of. No one's ever actually seen it happen, but Pokemon hatch from eggs so, they've got to lay them, too, right?"

"Wow. Does that mean Pikachu could lay an egg for me?" He was now staring intently at the yellow mouse as if he would lay one as they spoke.

Misty rolled her eyes, "Pikachu is a boy Pokemon, boys can't lay eggs. Only girls can do that."

"Does that mean you can lay an egg?" Misty stopped suddenly causing Ash to jerk forward slightly, "Hey, why'd we- ow!"

Misty had smacked him on the back of the head as she blushed furiously, "No, I can't, you moron!"

"Why'd you hit me?" Ash growled as he rubbed his head.

"Because you said something stupid," Misty was beginning to cool down now.

"I was just asking a question," he muttered so that she couldn't hear.

They found their way back to Ash's room and she helped him back into bed before taking the egg back into her care, "Now, don't you go running around the center again, got it?"

Ash was quick to retort, "Well, don't go running away and I wouldn't have to."

Misty opened her mouth as if she was about to respond, but then shut it as she realized she had nothing to say. He'd crawled out of bed, paraded across the hospital and endured a scolding from Nurse Joy just because he'd been worried about her. What could she say to that? "Ya know, Ash. I ran away because of just this reason."

Ash was suddenly very puzzled, "What do you mean?"

"Well, you see, I thought that since you do so much for me, that you might be better off if I wasn't around to save all the time. You wouldn't even be in this bed right now if it weren't for me." Misty bowed her head, feelings from earlier creeping up again.

"Mist..." She lifted her head slightly to meet his gaze. His look was everything. It was shock and confusion. It was anger and sadness. It was happiness and anxiety. But it was also fear. Fear of what? "Do you know where I would be if it weren't for you? I would be home with my mom and Pikachu. I would be sitting around doing nothing all day. Every day. My life before you was... It was nothing. Don't get me wrong. I love my mom and Pikachu." He paused as he looked at the electric rodent, "I do. But..." He shifted his gaze back to Misty, "if it weren't for you, I wouldn't know what to do. You're my best friend, Misty. Please don't leave."

If it was possible Ash delivered an even more powerful speech than Brock had. To the point where Misty felt tears coming to her eyes, "Th-thank you, Ash. I don't know what to say."

Ash smiled uncomfortably. The room had grown very tense so he said the first thing he could think of, "That's a first."

The tension of the room dissolved instantly as Misty's face changed from a blush of flattery to one of rage, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Ash realized that maybe he'd made a miscalculation, "Uh..."

"Oh... Ash Ketchum!" Ash prepared himself for the hit, but it never came. Misty simply flopped down in the seat next to him with her arms crossed.

Ash smiled a bit to himself and laid his head down on the pillow, "Goodnight, Mist."

_A/N: Alright. I know it's short, but I really just wanted to get a chapter up. I'll try and post again before next monday, but in the case that I fail, you can expect one then. And hold me to it. Seriously. I need some motivation. That means reviews, private messages, assassins sent to my home to kill my family. Whatever you prefer. The point is, I'm gonna try and update as often as possible while still updating every week on Mondays. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	21. Chapter 21

_A/N: Hey, guys. You would not believe the week I've had... Ugh. I'm exhausted. I barely had time to write so this chapter isn't very long either. Please don't hate me. Quick Shoutout to Isaak Magnum Valhyre and a Guest for their reviews. Always very much appreciated. Keep them coming! I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this chapter, so maybe you guys can tell me what you think. Honestly, I had like no time to write. I don't have much to do this coming week though, so there will be a lot more in store, so don't give up on me yet. Anyway, I won't keep you any longer. Happy Reading!_

_If I owned pokemon, then I wouldn't confuse the young viewers of the first season by throwing in random Johto pokemon. That was uncool guys... _

"Go fish," Misty was sitting cross legged at the foot of Ash's bed and Ash was sitting at the head. In between them was a deck of playing cards that Nurse Joy had brought them after the fiftieth time that Ash had complained that he was bored.

"What?" Ash straightened suddenly, "You have to have a two. Brock just told me."

Misty peered over her shoulder to see Brock suddenly look away and rub his head in an attempt to act casual. She rolled her eyes and looked back at the raven haired boy across from her, "Well, I don't. He was lying. Now, go-"

"How do I know _you're_ not lying?" Ash questioned as his eyes narrowed at her.

"Ash..." Misty began.

"Brock could be telling the truth and you could just be trying to keep all your two's to yourself."

"I don't have any-"

"Show me your cards," Ash commanded as he held out his hand to grab them.

"No!" Misty pulled her cards away from him.

"Why? Because you're cheating?"

"Am not!"

"Are to!"

"Am not!"

"Are-"

"Dear Mew! Will you guys shut up! I was lying about the two, Ash. Misty has none," Brock couldn't stand his two friends fighting so much. And they did it all the time.

The pair stared at the older boy for a few moments before shrugging. Ash picked a card up off the top of the deck and Misty took her turn, "Do you have any..." She paused to think, "Two's?

Ash looked up with an expression of shock, "But..."

"I _was_ lying, stupid. Hand them over."

"You-"

"Excuse me," Nurse Joy interrupted before another argument could start, "But I just got the most recent tests back. Ash, the spores have completely left your system and there is no trace of them that I can see. There were a few abnormalities in your blood, but I'm sure it's nothing. I'd like you to stay the night, but then tomorrow you can leave." She smiled at the three of them and left.

Ash smiled. He would be happy to finally be able to leave this place. He'd only been there a week, but already he'd gotten tired of the monotony that the Pokemon Center had to offer.

A few hours later, Brock and Misty had gone: Brock to his room in the Pokemon Center and Misty to her sisters' apartment. Meanwhile, Ash was just lying in bed staring at the ceiling. Pikachu was dozing at the foot of his bed. Normally they didn't like Pokemon being so close to human patients, but Nurse Joy had made an exception for Pikachu. But even with his best pal, Ash just couldn't bring himself to sleep.

In the first few days of their journey, Ash didn't have a lot of time to think. They were either running for their lives or coming up with another plan to catch a mutant. But now, he'd had a week to think. He'd had a week to run over all the details in his head and he realized something. He was scared.

In the beginning, it had been all about keeping Misty safe, then it had been about collecting information, and now it was finding and capturing giant, deadly, mutant Pokemon. Ash was starting to think that they may have been a bit over their heads. These thoughts had started to arise back during the nidoqueen incident, but ever since parasect attacked they came up more and more.

He rolled on to his side and stared out the window. It was very dark outside. Ash was used to dark nights because Pallet was always quiet and no one was ever awake much later than nightfall, but here it was different. This was a city. It had tall buildings and tons of people. Most of them lived in the big apartment complex where Misty's sisters lived, but still. He'd always imagined cities to have big lights and sounds and people running all around. But here he was in a city and it was just like Pallet. Quiet.

He rolled onto his other side and faced the wall. It was plain white, like a canvas for Ash's imagination to paint on. His mind began to drift to Pokemon running and playing and battling side by side with people. Not for survival, but for fun. He sighed happily at the thought forgetting, at least for a little while, about their grim situation. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Misty sat on the edge of her bed with her newly found egg in her arms. She stared at it dreamily as she began to muse over the various Pokemon it could contain. _Maybe it's a squirtle... Or a Poliwag. It's got to be a water type at least. Why else would it have been at the gym? What if it's Gyarados's baby? No... Then it would be orange like a magikarp... Right? Hmm._

Her sisters had told her that they could easily find out what kind it was. They had a bunch of old journals from their parents that contained information on all kinds of water Pokemon. It had everything from what moves they could learn to whether they evolved or even what their eggs looked like. It was certainly tempting, but Misty had ultimately decided it would be more fun to wait and find out.

Misty laid herself down on the bed with the egg still in her arms. She closed her eyes as she continued to imagine all the different Pokemon that might come out of the mysterious egg, _A seel, maybe? Or a horsea? A horsea would be nice. They're so cute._

* * *

_Where should we go next?_ Brock was lying face-up on the Pokemon Center bed provided for him. He'd been trying to discern what direction to go in from their current position for a while now. _We could go south towards Saffron, but I doubt there would be any mutants between here and there... Or we could go west and see if there's anything we missed around Mt. Moon, but I doubt that there would be... We could go East towards Rock Tunnel, but I'm not sure if we're ready to go into a big dark cave full of infected Pokemon just yet. I suppose that only leaves one place to go..._

* * *

The next morning, surprisingly, the first awake was Ash. He rolled out of the hospital bed and onto his feet. His clothes were folded up beside his bed: His jeans, his black t-shirt, his jacket... And the stone. He'd almost forgotten about the thunderstone. He picked up the stone carefully.

He'd thought about evolving Eevee with it, but now that he'd evolved into Espeon that wasn't an option. He was still dead set on _not_ using it on Pikachu, but then who? Maybe he wouldn't use it. Maybe he would keep it as a good luck charm. Then again, it hadn't proved to be too lucky for them up to this point. At the same time, he couldn't bring himself to simply discard the stone. Ultimately, Ash pulled the thunderstone necklace over his head and placed it under his shirt as before. He'd decide what to do with it later. First, he wanted to leave his dreaded white prison.

Ash tried to wake Pikachu gently at first, but when he didn't move, Ash shook the electric rodent awake. Pikachu didn't take kindly to this, and upon waking up immediately shocked Ash with a little more power than necessary. Ash felt the electricity course through him and for a second he felt like he might fall over again, but the the feeling quickly passed.

"What was that for?" Ash scowled.

"Pika," Pikachu replied equally as annoyed.

"Well, you can't sleep all day!"

"Chu Chu Pika Pichu!"

"Don't bring that up! You know that I didn't mean to break the window!"

"Pikachu Pika Pika Pichu Pi!"

"Yeah? Well, you're a stupid head!"

"Ahem?" A new voice entered.

Both heads turned towards the open doorway where Brock stood awkwardly as he watched the two of them bicker like brothers, "Oh, hey Brock."

"Pika Pichu," Pikachu added.

Brock stared at the mouse for a few seconds before shaking his head, "How do you understand him? It's like you know exactly what he's saying."

Ash shrugged, "I don't know. It's always kind of been like that. Ever since we met."

"How _did_ you meet Pikachu? You're only ten now, so you can't have got him as a starter Pokemon."

Suddenly, Ash and Pikachu seemed a bit uncomfortable, "Well, uh... That's a long story. Maybe I'll tell it some other time, but we should really get going. Where's Misty?"

"Right here!" All three of them looked over Brock's shoulder to see Misty had appeared. They both joined Ash and Pikachu in the room and Misty continued, "So, where are we heading next?"

Ash furrowed his brow, "I don't know. I didn't really think about it."

Brock smirked a little, "Well, luckily for both of you, I did. It's a few days hike from here, but we should make good time if get a move on."

Misty looked at Brock puzzled, "And where are we going exactly?"

"The Cape of Cerulean. You have to be familiar. It's a spot just north of here that many viewed as one of the most beautiful places in all of Kanto," Brock said matter-of-factly, then he got a familiar look in his eyes, "They also say that it used to be one of the most romantic spots. When I ask Nurse Joy to join me on a midnight walk along the cape, there's no way she could possibly say 'no'!" He smiled broadly at his "full-proof" plan.

"Uh, Brock," Ash spoke up, "You just said that it _used_ to be one of the most romantic spots. I doubt that it still looks like that."

Brock's shoulders slumped in disappointment, "You're right. Now, how will I get Joy to confess her love for me..."

Ash shook his head and looked at Misty. She was looking at her feet quietly, "Mist?" She looked up, "Are you okay?"

"Hmm? I'm fine. I just forgot something back at my sisters. You two go on without me," She refused to make eye contact. Brock snapped out of his daze and he and Ash watched as Misty silently walked out of the room.

"What's wrong with her?" Brock said bluntly.

"Pikachupi?" Pikachu muttered with his head tilted.

Ash stood transfixed with his mind working hard to try and figure out what the problem could be. Then it clicked, "Mist, wait up!" He set off at a quick pace to catch up with her. Pikachu and Brock looked at each other confusedly for a moment before following.

* * *

Misty sat up against the wall of the Pokemon Center in the wasteland that was once her hometown. Her face was buried in her hands as she willed herself not to breakdown completely. _Why do we have to go _there_? Anywhere, but there._

"Mist..." Misty looked up from her spot on the ground to see Ash standing in front of her, "What happened at the Cerulean Cape?"

She lowered her gaze once again. She didn't speak for a while, but when she did, what she said truly surprised Ash, "How did your dad die, Ash..?"

"Wha-? I, uh..." Ash stuttered.

"Sorry. I know that sounds horrible, but... Ya know, my parents..." She looked out into the distance, seemingly towards the north and the cape, "They were at the cape. With me. Or rather, they'd come looking for me. We had a small cabin up there when I was little. We used to... to go there on the weekends." She sniffled quietly, "One of the times, I left early in the morning before anyone else was awake. I... I unlocked the door and walked out. The river was close by and I wanted to see the water Pokemon. There was this... th-this... G-Gyarados..." Tears were building in her eyes and she was speaking very quickly, "And my p-parents... They were trying to find me. To s-save me. And th-they... they..."

Ash didn't let her finish. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and protectively, "It's okay, Mist. I'm here. Everything's okay."

She buried her face in his shoulder, "I'm sorry..." Ash was sure who or what she was apologizing for, but he didn't question it. He just rocked her back and forth comfortingly.

When she seemed to calm down a little, then he spoke, "My dad died close to home. _Very _close."

_A/N: Well, that was fun. Started at light with some "Go fish" and then it quickly escalated to a discussion involving the death of our young adventurer's parents. Hooray! I will update next monday. Keep an eye out for me, This story is more than 50,000 words long and still picking up speed. Please, please, please review. I love hearing from all of you. Until the next installment, See ya!_


	22. Chapter 22

_A/N: Hey, guys! I'm getting used to this whole weekly update thing. I made this chapter a fairly long one, so there ya go! Shoutout to my reviewers, Isaak Magnum Valhyre and HunterKiller1014. You guys are awesome! I hope to keep hearing from you and many more. Hint. Hint. Review. Hint. Anyway, happy reading!_

_If I owned Pokemon, I would make a game that encompassed all the regions in one big world map. Also, you could find starter Pokemon on occasion in the wild. That would be awesome..._

_5 years ago_

"Who's there?" A five year old Ash looked over his shoulder anxiously. There was nothing. He could have sworn he'd seen something. Cautiously, the young boy looked back out over the water. He'd been sitting at the edge relaxing like he usually took the time to everyday, but out of the corner of his eyes he'd seen a small flash of yellow.

This had happened a good many times on the way to the water, too, but only now was Ash beginning to suspect that they was something else present. He waited with shallow breath for any sign of the thing that was following him, but it didn't show again. Ash's shoulders slumped. He was a little disappointed. If it was a Pokemon, then maybe he could have become friends with it, but it turned out to be nothing more than his wild imagination.

Ash began to relax once more as he stared out at the crashing waves. Somewhere deep in the pit of his stomach, he'd always kind of felt drawn to the water, or at least things from the water. In fact, when he turned ten, he would probably pick a water-type Pokemon to be his starter. He couldn't wait until that day, he would make sure to wake up bright and early to make sure he got his best choice of Pokemon.

The slow pushing and pulling of the waves was soothing to the point where Ash began to feel himself drift off to sleep. His eyelids were becoming heavy and the sand he was lying on was suddenly the most comfortable thing in the world. Just when the youngster was on the verge of a deep slumber the sound of crackling thunder jolted him awake.

"Wha-?!" He looked up at the sky. There wasn't a single cloud, or rather, not above him anyway. There was a small collection of very dark clouds inside town. A single bolt of lightning crashed down from sky and another boom of thunder followed close by. Ash jumped to his feet. And stared off in the direction that the lightning had hit. It was the same direction as his home.

Ash set off at a sprint and weaved his way through the hilly terrain with practiced footing. He knew the most direct path home even though he usually liked to take the scenic route. The small house came into view after a few minutes and Ash's worries were confirmed. The storm was collecting right over his home and large bolts of electricity were raining down and striking in random places. Ash finally made it to the house, but he was immediately grabbed by two gentle but firm hands.

"Ash! Oh, Ashy! Oh, dear! Thank mew you're okay!" Delia Ketchum's grip was like iron and Ash began to wonder whether her hold was doing more harm than good.

Ash finally got a word in when she was giving him a physical check-up, "Where's dad?"

She stopped her fussing for a second, "Your father... He's... Well... He's out there."

Ash's eyes widened, "Shouldn't we go get him?"

His mother hung her head a little low so he couldn't see her eyes, "It's more important that you stay safe."

"But what about-" Ash began.

"Enough!" Delia said suddenly. Ash jumped at the interjection. His mother rarely yelled at him. She must be really upset. Ash couldn't say he was surprised given the circumstances, but still.

Ash was prepared to heed his mother's words and simply go inside when out of the corner of his eye he saw a flash of yellow. He turned his head quickly just in time to see a small yellow creature scamper past him, "Wait! Come back!" Ash didn't hesitate for a second before running after whatever it was.

"Ash! Stop! It's too dangerous!" His mother's words were lost on him as he continued to run after the little thing.

He followed it right into the middle of chaos. Lightning was touching down all around him. One came so close that the impact sent him flying through the air. He landed with a thud on the grass and the smell of smoke filled his nostrils. He coughed and tried to look around. Where the lightning was hitting fires were beginning to spring up. He tried to catch a glimmer of yellow amidst the destruction and after a few seconds of scanning he saw the little creature further ahead.

Ash struggled to pull himself to his feet. He lurched his way over the creature as lightning continued to crash left and right. Upon getting closer he noticed that the yellow creature wasn't alone. In fact, there was a much larger orange creature standing close by. He could only guess that these were both Pokemon because the only Pokemon that he knew were the ones his father had taken the time to show him and that wasn't very many.

Just then, he saw him: his father. He was lying face-flat on the ground and his clothes were in tatters. Ash knelt down next to the figure and managed to choke out, "Dad..?" He didn't stir. Ash attempted to shake the man awake, but still he didn't move, "Dad?!"

"Rai..." Ash glanced up towards the orange Pokemon who had created the sound.

Something clicked in Ash's head, "Did you do this..?"

The Pokemon showed his teeth in what might have been a smile. They were sharper than Ash had expected. In fact, they were razor sharp. The Pokemon's tail whipped around behind it. It was long and looked like a wire. It was pitch black except for the tip which was shaped like a distorted lightning bolt. The warped lightning bolt was a sickly green color and it was flecking off electricity.

"Raiii," the yellow-green patches on its cheeks began to spark with electricity like its tail as it charged its next attack, "CHU!" Electricity shot straight up into the storm cloud and the clouds darkened once again as lightning began to strike all around once more. The Raichu, as Ash guessed its name was, wasn't done, however, as it began to run at Ash and his father and its tail began to turn a grandiose white color.

It looked like it was about to whip its tail at them, when suddenly the small yellow one ran in front, "Pichu!"

The Raichu stopped suddenly as something appeared to flash in its eyes if for only a second and it hesitated. It shook its head as if pushing away the thought and smacked the yellow "Pichu," as it had so conveniently named itself, out of the way. It bared its teeth once more as it growled, "Rai..."

"Pi..." the weak voice of the young pichu interjected as it crawled its way back into the path of the domineering Raichu.

"Rai!" It pummeled the pichu into the ground once more, this time with no look of hesitancy about it.

"Chu!" Pichu cried in pain as Raichu continued to beat it furiously.

"Stop!" Ash yelled as tears filled his eyes, "Why are you doing this? Can't you see we don't want to fight? What did we do to you..?"

Raichu stopped and stared at the young boy with malice in its eyes. There was no sympathy. There was no hint of decency or emotion of any kind at all. It was simply blind fury and mindless destruction that fueled it. Not only could Ash see this, but Pichu could, too.

"Pi..." Sparks began to fly off the young rodents cheeks and it winced slightly, "Pi. Pi. Piii." Pichu was running in circles around Raichu for no other reason it seemed then to pick up speed, but suddenly the sparks on its cheeks encased its whole body as it continued to run faster and faster. Raichu and Ash alike were shocked and surprised at the sight though Raichu was really more irritated than anything.

Just as Raichu was about to step in and stop the young Pichu, he turned on a ninety degree angle and slammed directly into Raichu's chest. The electricity sparked off of Raichu and Pichu as they seemed to stand perfectly still for a fraction of a second. Then, there was an explosion. The epicenter of the explosion between Pichu and Raichu quickly spread to encompass them and Ash and his father a well. Everything went white with light as Ash felt electricity course through him and a moment later it all faded to black.

* * *

"And that's what happened..." Ash said with a melancholy expression.

"Wait, what?" Misty said exasperated. Ash had just told a very long and very detailed rendition of his father's death, but the way it ended seemed to result in both of their deaths instead of just his dad, "What happened after that?"

Ash thought for a moment, "Well, I woke up in the hospital a few days later, my mom told me what happened to my dad, and the Pichu who had also survived the explosion became my best friend."

"So, that's how you and Pikachu met, huh?" Brock's voice came from behind Ash and he spun around to greet the older boy.

Pikachu stared puzzled at Ash, "Pikapi? Chu Pikachu?"

"I know, but I felt like I had to. She told me about her parents. It only seemed right," Ash responded as if he was speaking to a human and not a small electricity packed rodent.

Brock shook his head disappointed, "So, all it takes is a pretty girl to get you to spill your guts..."

Both Ash and Misty's cheeks flushed red as Ash responded, "No! It's not because she's- She's not- I just felt like telling her, that's all..." He crossed his arms stubbornly as he turned away from Brock, mostly to prove a point, but also to hide his face which was increasingly growing more and more red.

"Mhmmm," Brock hummed knowingly as he chuckled at the younger children.

"Don't be gross, Brock," Misty began, "Like Ash would ever be smart enough to appreciate the beauty of a lady..."

"Hey!" Ash retorted, "I am _so _smart. Besides I don't see any beautiful lady around here, just a scrawny, little girl!"

"What did you say, Ketchum?" Misty's cheeks were turning red for a whole new reason now.

"You heard me!"

"Why you-!" Misty jumped up from her spot on the ground and tried to grab Ash, but he'd already made a break for it, "Get back here!"

"Like I would ever willingly do that!" Ash yelled as he laughed uncontrollably to himself.

Brock simply sighed, "You think we should stop them?"

Pikachu shook his head slowly with a similar expression to the one Brock held on his face, "Pikachu Chupi..."

"You said it," Brock nodded.

* * *

"Pikapi?" Pikachu looked at the three humans curiously as they spoke. He couldn't completely understand their weird language aside from Pikapi, but he didn't need to know what they were saying to know what was going on.

"Guys. Is this really a good idea?" Brock stood off to the side as Misty and Ash squared off across from one another. Their little banter had escalated to a full on battle now as each gripped a pokeball and glared at each other from across their makeshift field.

"You got to battle him, so why not me?" Misty retorted without even looking at Brock.

"Yeah, Brock. Besides if we're gonna be having battles like the one with Parasect, we're gonna need some training," Ash added. Brock raised an eyebrow. It seemed they could only agree with one another when they were disagreeing with someone else.

With a sigh, Brock shrugged his shoulders, "Fine. If you must, go ahead, but we're staying right outside the Pokemon Center in case something goes wrong. AND I'll be refereering."

"Fine!" The two younger children said in unison hardly paying attention to Brock anymore.

Brock stepped in between the two trainers, "This will be a best two out of three match. No name calling..." He glanced at Misty, but she didn't seem to notice, "Or pettiness..." His gaze shifted to the equally oblivious Ash, "And above all, this is for fun. Now, let the battle begin!"

With that, they enlarged the pokeballs they were holding and tossed them out in front of them. Ash's Pokemon emerged first, "Go, Snorlax! Let's make this quick!" The giant normal type Pokemon appeared in a sitting position and rubbed his eyes as if he'd just awoken. He opened his mouth and released a hefty yawn before standing upright to face his opponent.

"Staryu, I choose you!" They starfish Pokemon let out its cry immediately signifying its readiness to battle, "Quick, use swift to catch him off guard, then follow up with a rapid spin to his feet and knock him down!" Staryu began to fire off small yellow stars at Snorlax before flying through the air after them like a frisbee.

Ash was almost too impressed by Misty's strategic thinking to react quickly enough, "Defense Curl, Snorlax!" Snorlax responded immediately by tucking his arms and legs into his large body and lowering his head. The stars bounced harmlessly off of him, "Now, use tackle and meet Staryu head on!"

"Snor!" Snorlax uncurled himself, but Staryu was too fast and he got hit right in the stomach by Staryu's rapid spin. He was sent back a few feet, but he remained standing much to Misty's disappointment.

"Now, Snorlax. While Staryu's close, use yawn to put it to sleep!" Snorlax didn't mind this order, he was rather tired and yawning came naturally. Fortunately, it seemed to take its toll on Staryu as it, too, yawned, or whatever the equivalent is for a Staryu.

As it swayed back and forth drowsily, Misty clenched her teeth, but then her eyes widened as she had an idea, "Staryu, use Water Gun on yourself!"

Ash and Brock raised an eyebrow at this. She wanted Staryu to talk _itself_? Even so, Staryu obediently directed its top point at itself and fired. It was a very awkward angle, but it seemed to work. Immediately after being hit by the rush of cold water, it shook a little bit and shouted its cry. It no longer looked the least bit tired.

Ash was shocked, "Wha-?"

Brock nodded, "I see." Ash glanced at him as he continued, "You had Staryu attack itself so that the water would keep it from falling asleep. Very clever."

Misty smirked at Ash from across the battlefield and now it was his turn to grit his teeth, but Misty wasn't done yet, "Good job, Staryu. Now, use Camouflage!" Before Ash had a chance to react, Staryu's gem glowed slightly before it faded from view.

"Snor?" Snorlax looked around lazily for his opponent, but it had seemed to completely vanish.

Ash was looking around cautiously, "Be on your guard, Snorlax. Staryu could appear at any-"

"Now, Staryu! Use Rapid Spin!"

Staryu appeared behind Snorlax and flew at Snorlax. It swept right below him knocking his feet out from under him and he landed with a thud. Ash would have ordered Snorlax to get up, but he could hear the sound of Snorlax snoring and he knew it was a lost cause. He returned his Pokemon and Misty did the same.

Mist was still smiling, "Next up! Starmie!" The evolved form of her former Pokemon appeared in a flash of white light.

Ash smiled back, "Go, Bulbasaur!"

The grass type came out and stretched his legs. He soaked in the sun for a few seconds before standing at attention, "Ba!"

Brock nodded his head approvingly, "Very good, Ash! Grass is super effective on Water!"

Ash straightened at the sound of Brock's voice, "Right! I knew that!" He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as he thought, _Bulbasaur's just cool looking..._

Misty didn't hesitate, "Starmie, use tackle!"

"Bulbasaur, you, too!" They clashed in mid air, but Bulbasaur managed to push Starmie back, "Now, use Sleep Powder!"

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur released light blue powder from the bulb on his back and the powder flew at Starmie. Starmie had little time to react before the powder hit it and it immediately fell asleep.

"Good job! Now, finish it with Vine Whip!" Two vines extended out of Bulbasaur's bulb and wrapped around two of Starmie's points before lifting it up and slamming it back down with a crash. Starmie's gem flickered faintly signifying that it was, in fact, unconscious. They each returned their Pokemon.

Misty smiled slightly, "That was impressive, Ash. No one's ever taken out my Starmie that quickly before."

Ash smirked, "Well, Grass is super effective on water, so..."

Misty rolled her eyes, "Like you knew that! You probably just picked Bulbasaur because you think he looks cool of something..."

"Did not!" he lied.

Misty rolled her eyes again, "Whatever. You're in for it now! This last Pokemon took on a Gyarados! Go, Goldeen!" The goldfish Pokemon was released from the pokeball and immediately started to flop around on the ground pathetically, "Oh, shoot! There's no water."

Ash laughed, "Nice going, Misty! I'm gonna win this battle for sure! Let's go, Pikachu!" He pointed expectantly towards the battlefield, but he didn't immediately hear the scamper of tiny mouse feet run past him. He heard nothing, "Pikachu?" He spun around to see Pikachu sitting beside Brock and not budging. "Uh, Pikachu. I need your help, buddy."

Pikachu shook his head, "Pi Pikachupi!"

"What do you mean 'you won't fight Misty'?" Ash responded incredulously.

"Pika!"

"But don't you want me to win?"

"Pi."

"Why not?"

"Pika Chu Pi Pichu Pi."

"I am _not_ a sore loser!"

"Pichu Pi-"

"Guys!" Brock interrupted. They stopped bickering and looked at the older boy, "Ash, you still have one more Pokemon. Just use him."

Ash glared at Pikachu one last time, "Fine. At least I know that Espeon won't refuse to battle for me."

Pikachu stuck out his tongue in response, "Go, Espeon!"

Just as the two of them were about to start what would have been a very short battle, a boom of thunder echoed over area. Brock looked up at the sky. It was darkening as rain drops began to fall. "Guys, we may have to call this one a draw!"

Misty shook her head, "Don't be ridiculous!" She smiled deviously, "This battle's just getting started."

_Well? The mood of this chapter was all over the place. Started pretty dark. Then, it took a complete 180. To be fair, knowing Ash, they wouldn't dwell on the sadness for two long. It's just not his style to be upset about things for a long time. Even so, if you disagree. If you think that the mood of this chapter was too flighty then let me know and review. If you liked the chapter. Review. If you hate me. Meet me behind the gym at five o' clock. I'll be the one hiding behind the dumpster because I've never been in a fight before. Until the next installment, see ya!_


	23. Chapter 23

_A/N: Hey, guys! Sorry this chapter is a little late. I've been swamped these past few days. I tried to finish as quickly as possible while still providing some quality, but as always there's bound to be a few flaws. If you have any comments or concerns leave a review. I'm always happy to hear from you guys. Quick Shoutout to SatoKasu4ever, HunterKiller1014, and Isaak Magnum Valhyre for their reviews. As I said, they are always appreciated and I hope to hear more from all of you in the future. Enough of my senseless babbling though. Happy Reading!_

_If I owned Pokemon, then Charizard would have been part dragon-type the the whole time. Fire/Flying... Ridiculous. He's not a moltres..._

The rain came down lightly at first, but it wasn't long before it was down pouring and everyone present was soaked to the bone. The sound of wind filled the ears of Misty and Ash as they stared one another down. Espeon stood proudly in front of his children and with the rain Goldeen seemed to look less pathetic.

Pikachu's ears lay flat against his head as he stared at the two humans in front of him. He couldn't understand why they were fighting. Did they not like each other? Or was it the opposite? These thoughts also seemed to running through the head of the tan boy standing next to young Pikachu. Brock stared at the two of them from the safety of the inside of the Pokemon Center. Pikachu sat in the windowsill as his ears twitched with curiosity.

"Well?" Ash questioned with a smirk, "Are we gonna battle or are you just gonna stare at me all day?"

Misty smirked right back, "I was waiting for you, Ashy boy."

Ash's smirk faded, _Why does she seem so confident?_ He shook his head, "Espeon, you ready?"

"Espeon!"

"Alright! Use Quick attack! Let's get this over with."

"Goldeen, dodge! Then, use horn attack!" Misty ordered.

Ash laughed, "Mist, your goldeen's out of the water. There's no way she'll be able to- What?!" Ash had to stop mid-sentence because as he watched Goldeen moved out of the way faster than Ash thought possible and she practically flew at Espeon as her horn glowed. Espeon was just as shocked as his trainer and was hit directly. Espeon slid across the wet pavement and stopped about ten feet away.

"Good job, Goldeen. Now, before he has the chance to recover, use water pulse!" Misty looked very pleased with herself.

"Counter with Swift, Espeon!" Ash called out desperately. Luckily for Ash, Espeon hear him loud and clear and reacted quickly. The golden stars met the orb of water and caused it to dissipate before doing any damage. Ash grinned, "I don't care if your Goldeen can fly, Misty. You haven't won this yet!"

Misty gritted her teeth, but then smiled again before lowering her head apparently in defeat, "You're right, Ash. I haven't. I should just give up now."

Ash paused as he stared at her curiously, "What are you-"

"Goldeen, Supersonic!" Misty ordered suddenly. Goldeen resonded immediately by emitting a sound that reached such frequencies that Espeon started to stumble around in confusion.

"Wha-?" Ash stumbled back, "Hey, that's cheating!"

"It's not cheating, it's strategy!" Misty stuck out her tongue.

"It's playing dirty, and it's not fair!" Ash argued angrily.

Misty shrugged, "Oh, well. What are you gonna do about it?" Misty smiled devilishly and Ash balled up his fists in frustration. He himself was starting to feel a little disoriented from Misty's taunting, so he did what his mom always told him to do. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and relaxed. _That's it!_

"Espeon! Listen to the sound of my voice," Ash called to his pathetic Pokemon, "Stop!" The Pokemon stopped momentarily, "Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Once you've relaxed open and attack!"

"That won't work!" Misty called. She turned her attention to her own Pokemon, "Goldeen, use Water Pulse!"

Goldeen charged up her next water attack which in the rain would be extra powerful. Lightning struck somewhere off in the distance and thunder roared as the wind continued to howl menacingly. Espeon had been sitting quietly for some time now and Ash was getting nervous that there wouldn't be enough time to dodge the attack.

"Now!" Misty commanded. Goldeen fired a sphere of water that was easily three times it's size at Espeon as he continued to sit there quietly. Another crack of thunder sounded and Espeon began to glow blue as waves of energy floated off of him. Then, without a single command from Ash, he opened his eyes, which were glowing the same luminescent blue that the rest of his body was coated in, and fired off a shining beam of telekinetic energy from the crystal on his forehead.

The beam made contact with the giant water pulse. The two collided and an explosion boomed like thunder against the sky. The force was enough to push Ash and Misty back a little, but it was more than enough to send Espeon and Goldeen flying. Each landed with a thud and didn't move. Ash and Misty stood shocked for a few seconds before realizing that the battle was over. It was a draw. Each ran to their Pokemon.

"Espeon! Are you okay, buddy?" Ash asked desperately.

"Goldeen? Talk to me, Goldeen!" Misty pleaded.

"Esp... ee... on," Espeon muttered.

Ash smiled a little, "You were awesome, pal."

"Gol... deen," Goldeen managed.

"Thank goodness you're okay!" Misty hugged her Pokemon to her.

They returned their Pokemon and stood. They stared at each other for a few seconds before Ash began to walk towards Misty quietly. He stopped right in front of her and held out his hand, "Good battle, Mist."

She smiled slightly and her cheeks flushing a very light shade of pink, "You too." She took his hand and they shook respectfully.

After their friendly handshake, they made their way back to the Pokemon Center to find Brock standing in the doorway, "Let's go, you two. It's getting really bad out there!"

The two of them joined their older friend in the Pokemon Center and were immediately given towels with which to dry off. The lobby was nearly empty. There were a stack of clean towels on the front desk with a small sign that said, "Take one and dry off!" with a little smiley face. Misty and Ash each took one gratefully and wrapped them around themselves before giving the receptionist their injured Pokemon to be taken care of. The receptionist looked at them curiously as if questioning how they were injured in the first place, but seemed to decide it didn't matter as much getting them patched up.

Pikachu was perfectly healthy so he stayed with the trainers and they found a table to sit at. Ash, Misty and Brock each occupied a chair while Pikachu sat right on the table.

"That was one heck of battle, you guys. It sure makes me wish the old days," Brock said solemnly.

"Hey. Just because the world is a little different now doesn't mean we can't still have fun!" Ash said enthusiastically. The determination in his eyes was just as fiery as ever and the wide smile on his face was more contagious then PV itself.

Misty nodded smiling, "He's right. We definitely have to be careful, but whose to say that we need to be serious all the time."

Brock gave an amused smirk before shrugging, "You two can have all kinds of fun, but as the oldest I have to be resonsible and-"

Ash cut him off with a mocking voice, "I have to responsible and _boring_ and make kissy faces at random girls." He stuck his tongue out at Brock jokingly as Misty giggled.

Brock's ears turned red, "Hey! At least I'm brave enough to ask a girl out."

Ash's cheeks were tinged pink at this, "I could ask a girl out if I wanted to!" He turned away and crossed his arms, "I just don't. Girls are weird."

Misty hit him on the back of the head, "Hey! We're not weird. You just don't understand the complexity of being a lady."

Ash rubbed the sore spot on the back of his head that Misty had hit. She always hit in the exact same place without fail and it was really starting to hurt, "Hmph. And what would you know about being a lady again?"

* * *

The young boy ran as hard as he could from sounds of snapping claws. _Where is she?_ He thought desperately as he ducked behind a large rock and covered his head with arms as he shut his eyes tight. The approaching horde of Krabby were growing more and more impatient with their potential meal as they slowly made traveled in the direction he had gone.

The sounds seemed to become more and more distorted the closer they got, but fear glued his eyes shut. He refused to move until his sister came and retrieved him. She was definitely coming. She would never abandon him. A powerful boom of thunder drowned out everything else for a few moments, but when it had faded, he could feel the presence of the horde surrounding him. He cracked one of his eyes open, "Big Sister! Help me!"

* * *

Suddenly Pikachu's ears perked up and he looked in the direction of the front door. The trio quit their bickering momentarily to look at what Pikachu was staring at, but no one entered the building. Ash looked at Pikachu curiously, "Is everything alright, buddy?"

Pikachu's ear twitched after a few seconds, but other than that, he didn't move let alone answer Ash's question. Then, without any warning, Pikachu leaped off the table and out the Pokemon Center doors into the storm. Ash bolted from his seat in an attempt to catch the rodent while yelling questions and commands for his Pokemon to return, none of which were heeded.

Misty and Brock sat shocked for a few seconds longer before following and mimicking Ash's actions. No sooner had Ash finally gotten out of the hospital did he go running out into a dangerous storm at the risk of landing himself right back in. Ash, like his loyal companion, paid no heed to his friends as he tried desperately to keep up with the speedy electric-type.

The rain was so think that Ash could barely see more than five feet in front of his face, but he could just barely see a flash of yellow in front of him, "Pikachu! Where are you going?!"

He ran until his legs started to grow tired and the concrete beneath his feet was replaced by grass and stone. He could smell the slightest hint of briny water in the air. And that's when he heard it: The sound of snapping and growling and gurgling. Whatever it was certainly didn't sound friendly and Ash slowed to a walk.

Just within his line of sight he could see patches of red. They were moving about and most of the sound was coming from them. Ash approached cautiously to find a group of krabby gathered around something. Their pincers which were tinted slightly green in color snapped menacinglly.

Ash eased his way forward to get a closer look at what was the center of their attention and he had to suppress a gasp. On the ground was a young boy. He couldn't have been older than four or five. He was unconscious and was covered with bleeding cuts and bruises.

Ash's throat tightened at the sight. Was the boy...? No. He couldn't be. Ash wouldn't accept it. Desperately, Ash looked around for Pikachu, but there was no sign of him. _I can do this without my Pokemon's help,_ he thought to himself. Looking down he caught sight of a small stick. He picked it up carefully and weighed it in his hands for a few seconds before deciding it would be a viable weapon. He took a deep breath before releasing a battle cry and charging the horde.

* * *

"Ash!" Misty yelled. Ash had disappeared without a trace in this weather and they had no idea which way he went.

"Pikachu!" Brock yelled.

"Where are they?" Misty asked worriedly.

"Who knows. Pikachu just took off without any indication of why or where. Ash responded pretty similarly, but at least we know he was just following Pikachu. I swear those two attract trouble."

Misty nodded, "You're telling me." She sighed, "At least we can take comfort in the fact that they're together and can watch out for each other."

* * *

Ash stood alone against the horde. The krabby immediately took notice of him as he ran at them like a maniac. The new human was much bigger and would certainly provide a more plentiful meal than the smaller one. Taking note of this they decided that they would save the smaller human for later seeing as it wasn't going anywhere anytime soon, and would first take care of the stupid one with the stick.

Ash wasn't quite sure what happened next. Instincts that he never even knew he had kicked in and he blocked, parried and struck every last krabby until they were all unconscious or fleeing in pain. He'd even sent a few barreling towards the water with the force of his blows.

Finally, when the area was completely clear of Pokemon, he seemed to come back to his senses. Breathing heavily, he dropped the stick and knelt next to the boy. He was wearing glasses that seemed way to big for his face, but they were very askew and a bit cracked. He was also wearing a green t-shirt, green and brown sneakers and brown shorts. His hair dark blue color and his skin was pale.

Ash lowered his ear to his chest as he had with Misty on the day they met and was relieved to hear a steady heartbeat, but it was faint and fading fast. Fueled by adrenaline, Ash bent down and cradled the boy in his arms before lifting. It took a bit of effort, but Ash managed to lift the smaller boy and he turned to head back the way he came. Unfortunately, it could never be that easy.

Before him stood a rather large crustacean Pokemon that was also red in color. However, it was much taller and stood more upright. It had a large yellow star on its forehead and two massive claws that, also like the krabby, were tinted green: A clear sign of infection. A deep rumble filled it's throat as it seemed to whisper it's name, "Craw... Daunt..."

_A/N: Sorry it was a bit shorter, but I felt like that was a good place to stop for now. Any guesses as to who the little boy is? In any case, we'll find out next chapter, but feel free to take a stab at it anyway. Please review, guys. I can't begin to describe how excited I get each and every time I see that little review number go up. Let's try and hit 30 by next post? Maybe? Please? Until the next installment, See ya!_


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